Trump administration removes four-star Coast Guard leader over firing case. donald trump news
Linda Fagan, the first woman to lead a branch of the US armed forces, was among those fired by Trump on his first day in office.
The head of the United States Coast Guard has been removed from his post, as newly appointed President Donald Trump follows through on his pledge to fire top officials.
On Tuesday, US media published reports that four-star Admiral Linda Fagan had been ousted less than 24 hours after Trump took office.
She was part of a wave of dismissals as Trump sought to sharply reshape the executive branch, brandishing a catchphrase from his time as a reality TV star: “You’re fired.”
Fox News first reported Fagan’s removal. In 2022, Fagan became the first uniformed woman to lead a branch of the US armed forces.
According to a statement sent to Coast Guard units and obtained by The New York Times, the incoming administration found Fagan unfit for several reasons.
“He was terminated due to his lack of leadership, operational failures, and inability to advance the U.S. Coast Guard’s strategic objectives,” the statement said.
It also alleged that Fagan had paid “excessive attention” to diversity, equity and inclusion policies, known as DEI.
Trump has promised to eliminate DEI programs within the federal government, calling them “illegal and immoral.”
On Monday night, shortly after being sworn in, Trump issued an executive action to this effect, calling on federal agencies to “terminate” the DEI initiative.
“The public release of these plans demonstrated massive public waste and shameful discrimination,” he wrote.
Fagan was one of several officials targeted by Trump during his first and second days in office.
Late Monday night, Trump also posted a message on his platform Truth Social, warning of mass shootings.
“My Presidential Personnel Office is actively in the process of identifying and removing over a thousand presidential appointees from the previous administration who do not align with our vision of Making America Great Again,” he wrote.
The post identified four people to whom Trump delivered the following message: “You’re fired.”
They included General Mark Milley, a former Trump appointee critic who told journalist Bob Woodward that the Republican leader was “completely fascist.”
Another person identified in the post was Spanish American chef Jose Andres, founder of World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit that provides food in disaster areas.
Andres served on the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition under Trump’s predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, and Biden awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom earlier this month for his humanitarian work.
The chef clapped back at Trump’s “You’re fired” post with his own social media message on Tuesday.
“I submitted my resignation last week… my two-year term had already ended,” Andres wrote.
“God grant you wisdom, Mr. President, to put politics and name-calling aside… and instead lift up the everyday people working to bring America together.”
