why did hegseth call a meeting

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called a rare and unusual meeting of hundreds of U.S. military generals and admirals at the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia. The meeting was convened on short notice, and even many of the senior military leaders attending were not told the specific purpose of the gathering. This scale of assembling so many top military officers in one place at once is highly unusual and possibly unprecedented in recent history. Several reports indicate the meeting might be to address Hegseth's vision for military leadership, including his order earlier this year to reduce the number of four-star generals and admirals by at least 20% to streamline leadership and drive operational excellence. There is also speculation that it could relate to upcoming national defense strategy changes or organizational consolidations, but no clear public explanation has been provided yet. The meeting has raised concerns among some military officials about the disruption, security risks, and lack of transparency around the agenda. President Donald Trump has described the meeting as a positive event, while some officials question whether it might be more about optics or internal military restructuring under Hegseth's leadership.