WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday defended his decisions to fire or sideline nearly 30 generals and admirals over the past year with little explanation by falsely comparing his record to that of President Barack Obama.

“I would also note that under Barack Obama, 197 general officers were removed,” Hegseth said in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee. “So this is not something specific to this administration.”

The number Hegseth gave has no basis in fact. It originated with an unsigned 2018 editorial in Investor’s Business Daily, which cites right-wing news site “Breitbart.com’s Facebook page” as its source.

Hegseth’s actions to fire senior military leaders are without precedent in recent decades and have come with little explanation. On Wednesday, lawmakers pressed him to justify his decisions, including his move this month to remove Gen. Randy A. George, the Army chief of staff.

“Secretary Hegseth, I respect you,” said Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga. “I do want you to know I disagree with the firing of Gen. George.”

Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., an Air Force veteran, described George as a “patriot” and someone whom Republicans and Democrats have “huge admiration for.”

“Why did he get fired?” she asked.

“Out of respect for these officers, we never talk about the nature of their removal,” Hegseth replied. “However, I will note it is very difficult to change the culture of a department that has been destroyed by the wrong perspectives with the same officers that were there.”

Pentagon Cited the Fake Obama Number Previously

In November, Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, cited the 197 figure in a statement to The New York Times related to an earlier firing by Hegseth. News outlets “peddling Democrat talking points have clearly forgotten that 197 officers, including flag officers, were fired during the Obama administration,” the statement read.

When challenged on the figure’s origins, Kingsley Wilson, press secretary for the Pentagon, asked the Times not to publish the statement. Wilson then sent a new statement, which did not include the 197 figure.

The Pentagon did not reply to questions Wednesday regarding Hegseth’s use of the false number.

On Wednesday, Rep. Derek Tran, D-Calif., an Army veteran, also challenged Hegseth’s decision to block the promotion of four Army officers to be one-star generals. Hegseth told the lawmakers that he pulled the officers from the promotion list after Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll refused to do it.

“I did,” Hegseth said. When asked why, he said, “Because we review every general officer.”

Hegseth Blocks Promotions of Blacks and Women

Two of the officers targeted by Hegseth are Black men, and two are women on a promotion list that consists of about three dozen officers, most of whom are white men, senior military officials said. The highly unusual move has prompted some senior military officials to question whether the officers are being singled out because of their race or gender.

Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said last month that Hegseth’s intervention in the matter violated rules that promotions in the military services should be based on “individual merit and demonstrated performance.”

Hegseth will probably be asked again about the decision Thursday when he and Gen. Dan Caine, the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testify before the Senate panel.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Greg Jaffe/Kenny Holston

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