“When you start firing the military’s top lawyers, that means you are getting ready to order the military to do unlawful things. Trump replaces those JAGs with men who will justify any future unlawful and unethical actions that he wants the military to do,” wrote Democratic political candidate and former US fighter pilot Amy McGrath, also via X.
Presented with concerns about the implications of these firings, Hegseth said in a Fox News interview, “We want lawyers who give sound constitutional advice and don’t exist to attempt to be roadblocks.”
One of the mechanisms that the judiciary has to constrain the military are the Judge Advocate Generals, embedded in the military. These were fired at the beginning of Trump’s term: https://www.jurist.org/features/2025/02/26/explainer-jag-firings-spark-concerns-about-us-military-legal-oversight/