What happens when leaders have loyalists in charge of men with guns: Lessons for the US from Nicaragua, Syria and other authoritarian countries

Syrian army special forces in 2005, wearing pictures of their president, Bashar Assad, his father, Hafez, and brother, Basil, on their uniform, stand guard at a Lebanese military air base. Patrick Baz/AFP via Getty Images

In what’s been called a “Friday night massacre” at the Pentagon, President Donald Trump removed six top generals or admirals on Feb. 21, 2025, including Air Force General C.Q. Brown and Navy Admiral Lisa Franchetti. Trump also fired military lawyers who advise senior officers on the legality of their behavior in combat and at home.

Over at the FBI, the president has tapped loyalists Kash Patel and Dan Bongino to direct the executive branch’s largest internal security agency. These men have little administrative experience in federal law enforcement but have repeated Trump’s lies about the 2020 election.