Axed Pentagon aides claim their character was ‘slandered,’ little details were shared about leak investigation

Three Department of Defense aides who were dumped from the Pentagon this week amid concerns about unauthorized leaks have raised questions about their abrupt, public departures.

In a joint statement from senior adviser Dan Caldwell, deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick and Colin Carroll posted to X, the military veterans questioned the action against them, noting they were given few details about the investigation.

After being placed on leave and escorted from the building this week, the employees said they were “incredibly disappointed” by the manner in which their service at the Defense Department ended. 

“Unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door,” the aides wrote. “All three of us served our country honorably in uniform – for two of us, this included deployments to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And, based on our collective service, we understand the importance of information security and worked every day to protect it.”

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Former Pentagon aides Dan Caldwell, left, Darin Selnick and Colin Carroll. (Concerned Veterans for America, DOD )

The statement came after chief of staff Joe Kasper confirmed to Fox News Digital Caldwell, Selnick and Carroll were ultimately fired on Friday night.

Caldwell advised on the Europe portfolio, while Selnick focused on operations, administration and personnel matters, Fox News Digital previously reported. Carroll attended to acquisitions.

Though reports surfaced about President Donald Trump telling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the Pentagon would not intervene if Israel attacked Iran, officials discounted claims that the employees were booted based on their views on foreign policy.

Caldwell, Selnick and Carroll expressed in the statement that they still had not been told what they were being investigated for, if there was still an active investigation, or if there was even a real investigation of “leaks” to begin with.

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U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has yet to respond to the post on X. (Franco Brana/AFP via Getty Images)

Experts claim they are not entitled to an explanation until the investigation has concluded, as it is typical security protocol to limit potential suspects’ authorization and access.

Even if the investigation ends in their favor, as civilian political appointees, they can be fired at-will. If it goes the opposite way, they could lose their security clearances or face criminal charges.

“While this experience has been unconscionable, we remain supportive of the Trump-Vance Administration’s mission to make the Pentagon great again and achieve peace through strength,” the employees wrote on X. “We hope in the future to support those efforts in different capacities.”

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A view of the Department of Defense at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on March 14, 2023. (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

At least one of the former employees is consulting with legal counsel, Fox News Digital previously reported.

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The Department of Defense did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.