The provision represents a rebuke of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s personnel moves.

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Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill, on May 14, 2026.

Sen. Mark Kelly speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 1, 2025.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, left, and Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill on April 30, 2026.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth testifies before the House Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, on April 29, 2026.

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the Senate Armed Services Committee chair, leaves a closed-door briefing on the Iran War at the Capitol on March 10, 2026.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks to members of the media during a press briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Wednesday, April 8, 2026.

Smoke rises from the site of a strike in Tehran, Iran on April 1, 2026.

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US President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 31, 2026.

The Pentagon is seen from an airplane on Feb. 2 in Washington.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) departs a briefing at the U.S. Capitol, on March 10, 2026.

Smoke billows after overnight airstrikes on oil depots on March 8, 2026, in Tehran, Iran.

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Harvard University will allow military students new options to defer or continue their education after the Pentagon cut academic ties with the school.

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Sens. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz) depart a press conference before the State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Feb. 24, 2026.