đŸ”” Pentagon Shakeup

Author

Citizen Frank
February 21, 2025

Good morning. It’s Friday, February 21.

 

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is preparing to dismiss at least six senior generals and admirals, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown and Navy Chief Adm. Lisa Franchetti, in a sweeping purge of military leadership perceived as hostile to former President Donald Trump’s agenda.

The move, part of a broader effort to eliminate “woke” policies and redirect billions in Pentagon funds to Trump priorities like border security, follows Hegseth’s directive to cut $50 billion annually from the defense budget.

Elon Musk made a dramatic appearance at the 2025 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday, wielding a gilded chainsaw gifted by Argentine President Javier Milei as a symbol of his crusade against government bureaucracy.

Musk energized the conservative crowd with promises to slash federal spending and downsize the workforce.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with U.S. Special Envoy Keith Kellogg in Kyiv on February 20, 2025, seeking to mend relations after former President Donald Trump accused Zelensky of rejecting a controversial minerals deal and labeled him a “dictator.”

The meeting, held behind closed doors at Kyiv’s presidential office, focused on stalled U.S.-Ukraine negotiations over access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals and security guarantees.

No joint statement or press conference followed, per a U.S. request, as tensions over Trump’s push for a deal granting the U.S. 50% ownership of Ukraine’s mineral wealth deepened divisions.

Former President Donald Trump endorsed Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) for Florida governor on February 20, 2025, via Truth Social, declaring Donalds a “TOTAL WINNER” who would advance the “America First Agenda.”

The endorsement, issued nearly two years before the 2026 election, immediately reshaped the race to replace term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis, signaling Trump’s continued dominance over Florida’s GOP.

Canada triumphed over the United States 3-2 in a thrilling overtime showdown on February 20, 2025, to win the inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off Championship, the NHL’s midseason international tournament.

Connor McDavid scored the game-winning goal 8:18 into overtime, echoing Sidney Crosby’s iconic “Golden Goal” from the 2010 Olympics, as Canada secured its first major international title in 15 years.

The victory capped off a fiercely contested tournament marked by geopolitical tensions and record-breaking fan engagement, setting the stage for NHL players’ return to the Winter Olympics in 2026.

On February 20, 2025, Hamas staged a propaganda spectacle in Khan Yunis, Gaza, parading the bodies of four Israeli hostages in black coffins before handing them to the Red Cross.

The remains included three-year-old Kfir Bibas, his four-year-old brother Ariel, and peace activist Oded Lifshitz, 83. Israel later revealed one body was misidentified—not Shiri Bibas (the boys’ mother) but a Gazan woman—promising retaliation for Hamas’s “cruel and evil violation” of the ceasefire.

Amazon MGM Studios has taken creative control of the James Bond franchise through a landmark joint venture with longtime producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, ending their family’s six-decade stewardship of the iconic spy series.

The deal grants Amazon authority over future films, casting, and potential spin-offs, while Wilson and Broccoli remain co-owners of the intellectual property. The move follows Amazon’s $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM in 2022, which initially secured distribution rights but left creative decisions with the Broccoli family.

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