Top military officer central to Trump’s drug war will step down early

The U.S. military’s top officer overseeing operations in Central and South America will leave his assignment well ahead of schedule, officials said Thursday — an abrupt, surprising departure as President Donald Trump shows interest in extending his administration’s campaign of violence against drug cartels in the region.

Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey, the head of U.S. Southern Command, will retire at the end of the year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a statement posted on social media. Holsey has been in the job less than a year, arriving last November for what is typically a three-year assignment.

Hegseth did not disclose a reason for the move, instead expressing “deepest gratitude” to the admiral for his 37 years of service and crediting him with “a legacy of operational excellence and strategic vision.” Hegseth acknowledged the move minutes after the New York Times reported that Holsey was expected to exit prematurely.

A spokesperson for U.S. Southern Command did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Spokespeople for Hegseth did not respond to questions.

A recent surge of U.S. military activity in the region, coupled with the administration’s pervasive threats against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, has fueled speculation that Trump may be preparing to forcibly remove him from power.

In an interview Thursday, Rep. Adam Smith (Washington), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said it increasingly appeared the Trump administration was preparing for war with Caracas.

“Who in America wants to go to war with Venezuela?” Smith said, noting Congress had not authorized such a conflict. “Not too many.”

Smith said his staff was sending questions to the Pentagon related to Holsey’s resignation and would push for a public hearing on the matter. But he said he doubted his Republican colleagues would agree to hold one, especially during the government shutdown.

Two people familiar with the matter said Hegseth had grown disenchanted with Holsey and wanted him to step aside. The scrutiny began about a month ago — around the time that the Trump administration began ordering deadly strikes on alleged drug boats off the coast of Venezuela, they said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue.

It was not clear Thursday at what rank Holsey will retire. He will leave the service well short of the three years required to retire as a four-star admiral.

News of the admiral’s impending departure follows an announcement by Trump on Tuesday that U.S. forces had killed six people suspected of drug smuggling in international waters off the coast of Venezuela. The attack marked at least the fifth operation of its kind since September — accounting for nearly 30 deaths, Trump and Hegseth have said.

Some in Congress, which has the sole authority to declare war and has not formally authorized the use of deadly force in Latin America, have pushed back against the administration’s actions. Still, Senate Republicans last week narrowly defeated an effort led by Democrats that would have blocked the U.S. military from continuing the strikes.

Sen. Jack Reed (R.I.), the Senate Armed Services Committee’s top Democrat, said in a statement Thursday that Holsey’s abrupt exit “sends an alarming signal of instability within the chain of command” and warned against any “unwise and dangerous” intervention in Venezuela.

“Admiral Holsey’s resignation only deepens my concern that this administration is ignoring the hard-earned lessons of previous U.S. military campaigns and the advice of our most experienced warfighters,” Reed’s statement said.

Spokespeople for the Republican chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services committees declined or didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Holsey’s retirement marks the latest abrupt departure of a senior U.S. military officer as Trump and Hegseth sweep away what they consider too much emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion. The departure of Holsey, one of the only Black four-star officers in the military, follows the firing of numerous other senior officers this year, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the top admiral in the Navy, the admiral in the Coast Guard, and the No. 2 officer in the Air Force. A disproportionate number of those affected have been women.

Hegseth late last month delivered an unprecedented lecture to senior U.S. military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, ordering commanding generals and admirals from across the globe to hear him call for a renewed focus on military standards, including physical fitness. He warned that anyone who is not on board with the administration’s vision for the military should leave.

“I look out at this group and I see great Americans, leaders who have given decades to our great republic at great sacrifice to yourselves and to your families,” Hegseth said. “But if the words I’m speaking today are making your heart sink, then you should do the honorable thing and resign. We would thank you for your service.”