Snapshot · The Bulwark Podcast
David French called the forced ouster of universally respected General Donahue by Hegseth the Hemingway 'gradually, then suddenly' breaking point for public trust in the military's leadership.
Where this was said
At 1:05:00 · chapter starts 1:01:40
French has a newsletter column on General Donahue that Miller endorses, and he gives the argument in full here. The backdrop is relentless: Hegseth used a non-classified app to communicate airstrike information, launched military action in Iran without congressional approval, fired multiple generals and admirals, presided over unlawful strikes in the Caribbean, made the flu vaccine voluntary (producing an outbreak at a basic training base), and lost the Signal chat scandal. Each incident was alarming in isolation; the cumulative weight has been building for months. [1] — David French "Pete Hegseth forced out General C.D. Donahue — by many accounts the most universally respected warfighter in the Army. If Donahue wasn't go…" 1:01:40 Then Hegseth forces out C.D. Donahue — by virtually universal consensus among military professionals, one of the finest warfighters the Army has produced. Hegseth's entire justification for his purges has been lethality and meritocracy. If Donahue fails that test, the argument is dead. French sees something shift in the public response: Republicans alarmed, right-leaning independents alarmed, a broader sense that something has genuinely broken in the institution. He quotes Hemingway: 'How does a company go bankrupt? Gradually, then suddenly.' This was the suddenly moment.
Pete Hegseth forced out General C.D. Donahue — by many accounts the most universally respected warfighter in the Army. If Donahue wasn't good enough to survive, there is no argument that excellence can ever trump politics in the Pentagon. David French sees this as the moment the public alarm went from gradual to sudden.
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