Grassley, Banks Renew Call for Investigation into Milley’s Chain of Command Interference, Efforts to Undermine Civilian Control of the Military

WASHINGTON– Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Jim Banks (R-Ind.) are renewing calls for the Department of Defense (DOD) to finally address alleged misconduct by former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) General Mark Milley.
In aletterto the DOD’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the senators cite reports Milley tampered with the statutory chain of command, undermined civilian control of the military, violated military code through making derogatory and political public statements and provided inaccurate sworn testimony.
“The nation’s highest-ranking military officer has a solemn responsibility to set an example of excellence and to model good conduct for all American service members. The record suggests that General Milley failed to meet those standards,”the senators wrote.
Grassley and Banks are following up on their 2022 request for anindependent reviewof Milley’s actions. Former DOD Inspector General Robert Storch closed the review without providing answers.
“[Milley’s] conduct and willful undermining of his Commander-in-Chief posed a grave threat to civilian control of the military. The issues raised by Milley’s alleged misconduct are too important to be swept under the rug. They must be examined, and if substantiated, General Milley should be held accountable,”the senators continued.
In January, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth directed OIG to conduct a review of Milley’s misconduct and determine whether enough evidence exists for Milley to be stripped of a star in retirement.
The full text of the letter is availableHERE.
Background:Milley – who, per the Constitution and law, does not have command authority as JCS chairman – reportedly ordered senior officers to check with him before executing orders from President Trump during his first term.
Milley also has made partisan statements to the press, admissions in the bookPeriland derogatory comments about Trump, including those in his now-public draft resignation letter. Milley also reportedly promised a Chinese military official he would alert them ahead of time if the United States was about to attack China.
In April 2022, Grassley and Bankswrote to Milleyregarding their concerns.After months without answers, they sought aninspector general reviewof Milley’s actions.
After nearly nine months, the OIG claimed to have conducted a thorough review, butoffered no material or detailsto support its finding to halt its investigation.
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