Four-Star Dissent: Leaked Document Shows SOUTHCOM Chief Warned Iran War Is Straining Latin America

DORAL, FLORIDA - MARCH 05: (L-R center) United States Marine General Francis L. Donovan, Commander, United States Southern Command, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Stephen Miller, Homeland Security Advisor and White House Deputy Chief, pose for a photograph with regional defense and security leaders from the Caribbean and Central and South America before the start of the inaugural Americas Counter Cartel Conference at the U.S. Southern Command Headquarters on March 05, 2026 in Doral, Florida. The conference is being held to address narco-terrorism with regional defense and security leaders from the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. (Credit: Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

A classified Pentagon planning record made public last weekend shows that four of the U.S. military's most senior commanders — including the general who oversees Latin America and the Caribbean — formally objected to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's order keeping large numbers of ships, aircraft and troops locked into the war against Iran, warning the extended commitment is hollowing out the Pentagon's ability to respond to problems elsewhere, including at home.

What the leaked document reveals