WASHINGTON — The new administration quickly moved to fire Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan less than a day after President Donald Trump returned to the White House.
A senior Department of Homeland Security official told Breaking Defense Fagan’s firing was due to a failure to address border security threats; inadequate leadership in recruitment and retention; mismanagement of key acquisitions; “excessive” focus on diversity, equity and inclusion policies, and an “erosion of trust” due to the handling of Operation Fouled Anchor. (Operation Fouled Anchor concerned senior Coast Guard officials accused of covering up accusations of persistent sexual misconduct at the service’s academy.)
The DHS official also said Vice Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday would serve as acting chief in the interim. Fox News first reported Fagan’s ouster on Tuesday.
Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., today called Fagan’s firing an “abuse of power” and praised her record as the service’s chief, citing improved recruiting numbers and championing the trilateral security agreement ICE Pact, among other things.
“The Commandant’s outstanding record completely negates the President’s demonstrably false claims and signals his enduring interest to put politics over the best interest of our servicemembers and national security,” he said.
In a December interview with Breaking Defense, Fagan stressed she did not want to implement “an artificial barrier” to serving when asked about rhetoric at that time about banning transgender members of the military.
Keeping sensitive information safe in a new AI era
Why edge and endpoint security can’t be an afterthought.
“There are standards for service in the organization. You need to meet those standards, right?… You [have] got to have a certain level of fitness to graduate from boot camp,” she said at the time. “And bringing anyone who has a propensity to serve that meets those standards makes for a more ready, more resilient workplace and work teams.”
She declined to comment at that time about the impact mass deportations, something the new administration had been threatening, would have on the Coast Guard.
Fagan entered the Coast Guard in 1985. She was nominated and confirmed to become the service’s top officer in June 2022, which made her the first woman to lead a military service.
Prior to Trump returning to the White House, there had been widespread speculation that the new administration was preparing to fire numerous military officers — most notably, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Air Force Gen. CQ Brown, who as of publication retains his position — but Fagan is ostensibly the first senior officer to be terminated.
The administration announced Monday a slew of civilians taking over in acting positions as service secretaries at the Pentagon.
Updated 1/21/2025 at 12:17 am ET with comments from Rep. Joe Courtney and a senior DHS official.