Hegseth order broadens on-base firearm carry

April 3, 2026

Summary

A new Pentagon order told base commanders to generally approve troops’ requests to carry privately owned firearms for personal protection.

Why this matters

The order could change daily security rules on U.S. military bases and affect how commanders, military police, and service members respond during emergencies. It also shifts Pentagon policy toward broader approval of personal firearm carry on installations.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued an order Thursday directing military installation commanders to presume approval when service members request permission to carry a privately owned firearm on base for personal protection.

The directive reversed policies that largely limited personal firearms on base to law enforcement or training, though commanders had long been able to approve exceptions in some cases. Any denial must be issued in writing and include a detailed explanation.

“The memo I’m signing today directs installation commanders to allow requests for personal protection to carry a privately owned firearm with the presumption that it is necessary,” Hegseth said Thursday in a video posted online.

The order followed years of scrutiny over security at military installations after several shootings. A 2019 shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola killed three U.S. sailors and wounded several others, prompting security changes across installations.

Hegseth also cited incidents at Fort Stewart and Holloman Air Force Base.

“Recent events like what happened at Fort Stewart, Holloman Air Force Base or Pensacola Naval Air Station have made clear that some threats are closer to home than we would like,” he said.

“In these instances, minutes are a lifetime,” he added.

“Our warfighters are no less entitled to exercise their God-given right to keep and bear arms than any other American,” he said.

He also said, “Not all enemies are foreign, nor are they all outside our border.”

The directive left unanswered how privately owned firearms will be carried, stored, and integrated with existing security protocols. It also raised questions about how armed service members will operate alongside military police and base security forces, including at entry gates, housing areas, and other high-traffic or sensitive locations.

The policy also introduced legal and operational questions, including how federal installation rules will align with state firearm laws and whether expanded access could complicate responses during emergencies or active threats.

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth blocked or delayed promotions for more than a dozen Black and female senior officers across the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, according to nine U.S. officials familiar with the process.

Several officials said some officers appeared to have been targeted because of their race, gender, or perceived ties to Biden administration policies or officials. Others said Hegseth also scrutinized officers for support of Covid-19 vaccine or mask mandates, involvement in diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, or associations with former Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley.

Two officials said some military and White House officials were concerned that qualified officers were being stalled because of race or gender. “There is not a single service that has been immune to this level of involvement by Hegseth,” one official said.

On Thursday, Hegseth fired Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George, whose term had been expected to run through September 2027. Two additional officials said George had recently sought a meeting with Hegseth about blocked Army promotions that appeared to focus on women and Black men, but Hegseth declined to meet.

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The Pentagon has not publicly explained the moves.

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth removed the Army’s top general and two other senior officers as U.S. combat operations in Iran continued, according to Pentagon officials and multiple news reports.

The Pentagon said Gen. Randy A. George, the Army’s 41st chief of staff, would retire immediately. The department also said the changes included Gen. David Hodne, head of Army Training and Doctrine Command, and Maj. Gen. William Green Jr., the Army’s chief of chaplains.

Sean Parnell, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs, said in a statement posted on X that George “will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately,” adding that the department is “grateful for General George’s decades of service.”

According to multiple reports, Gen. Christopher C. LaNeve, the Army’s vice chief of staff, was expected to serve as acting chief of staff.

George, a four-star general and career infantry officer, had served as Army chief of staff since September 2023 after being nominated by then-President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate. He enlisted in 1982, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1988, and served in the Gulf War, Iraq War, and war in Afghanistan.

Before becoming chief of staff, George served as vice chief of staff of the Army and as senior military assistant to the secretary of defense. As Army chief, he led the Army Transformation Initiative, a restructuring and modernization effort focused on large-scale combat operations.

Hodne, a former Army Ranger, led Training and Doctrine Command, which oversees training, force structure, and war planning. Green oversaw religious support across the Army and advised senior leaders on troop welfare and morale. He became chief of chaplains in 2023 and was recently promoted to major general.

The removals came as U.S. forces continued strikes across Iran and as fighting and pressure on shipping lanes near the Strait of Hormuz increased. The Pentagon did not say how the leadership changes could affect operations, planning, or coordination with allies.