On the 22nd, it was reported that U.S. President Trump announced on the 21st that he had nominated Dan Cain to serve as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. military, replacing the current Chairman Charles Brown. Cain, 56, graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in 1990. He has served in the Air Force for many years and has flown the F - 16 fighter jet for more than 2,800 hours.
It was reported that on the day of the "9·11" terrorist attacks, Cain was one of the pilots involved in defending the Washington area. During the presidency of George W. Bush, he served as a counter - terrorism expert on the White House Homeland Security Council and participated in many highly classified intelligence and special operations missions. In 2003 when the U.S. invaded Iraq, Cain participated in formulating the U.S. military's combat plan against Iraq's "Scud" ballistic missiles. From 2021 to 2024, Cain served as the deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and was the main liaison between the CIA and the Department of Defense. A former commander of the U.S. Central Command once praised him as a "very talented military officer".
It was reported that Trump and Cain met as early as 2018. During their first meeting, Cain said that he could annihilate the "Islamic State" within a week, which left a deep impression on Trump. After the meeting, Trump mentioned this matter several times and also said that Cain was a "real general" rather than an "officer who can only appear on TV". Trump's appointment this time is considered an exceptional promotion because since 1949, all nominees for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. military have been four - star generals, while Cain is only a three - star lieutenant general. Trump said that Cain was a talent "buried" by former President Biden.
It was reported that since U.S. military officials should be loyal to the Constitution and not participate in politics, Cain will surely be "under the spotlight" in the future, and whether he can stay away from politics "largely depends on Trump".
It was reported that at last year's Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump revealed that Cain wore a "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) hat during their first meeting to show his loyalty. However, according to an officer who had worked with Cain and maintained a close relationship with him, Cain had never worn a hat with the MAGA logo and had "always insisted on not participating in politics".
