Less than a year into his tenure, the four-star commander of US Southern Command has abruptly turned in his request to retire at the end of 2025. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth first reported the news.
On behalf of the Department of War, we extend our deepest gratitude to Admiral Alvin Holsey for his more than 37 years of distinguished service to our nation as he plans to retire at year's end. A native of Fort Valley, Georgia, Admiral Holsey has exemplified the highest…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) October 16, 2025
On behalf of the Department of War, we extend our deepest gratitude to Admiral Alvin Holsey for his more than 37 years of distinguished service to our nation as he plans to retire at year's end. A native of Fort Valley, Georgia, Admiral Holsey has exemplified the highest standards of naval leadership since his commissioning through the NROTC program at Morehouse College in 1988.
Throughout his career—from commanding helicopter squadrons to leading Carrier Strike Group One and standing up the International Maritime Security Construct—Admiral Holsey has demonstrated unwavering commitment to mission, people, and nation. His tenure as Military Deputy Commander and now Commander of United States Southern Command reflects a legacy of operational excellence and strategic vision.
The Department thanks Admiral Holsey for his decades of service to our country, and we wish him and his family continued success and fulfillment in the years ahead.
Admiral Alvin Hosely was promoted to the command of USSOUTHCOM on November 7, 2024. Past commanders have served three or four years in the role.
Absent a family emergency, it is unheard of for Flag and General Officers to announce their retirement less than a year into their appointed term. Given the totality of the circumstances, it is likely he took Pete Hegseth's advice at his September meeting at Quantico (Pete Hegseth Makes a Much-Needed 'My Way or the Highway' Offer to Assembled Generals and Admirals); that would be "if the words I'm speaking today are making your heart sink, then you should do the honorable thing and resign."
Holsey came up through the ranks as a helicopter pilot and personnel officer (see bio). As far as I can tell, he managed to serve the entirety of his 37 years without passing through a combat zone. In 2020, he was " handpicked to serve as director, Task Force One Navy, analyzing and evaluating issues in society and the military that detract from Navy readiness." Those are codewords for "he ran the Navy's DEI program." The "pledge" required of all Navy leaders included the overtly Marxist "I pledge to advocate for and acknowledge all lived experiences and intersectional identities of every Sailor in the Navy."
His eleventh-hour elevation to commander of a Combatant Command by Biden, given his pedigree, strikes me as strange, but then I'm not Navy and never made it into the rarefied atmosphere of FOGO politics.
According to The New York Times, Holsey was not totally onboard with Trump's campaign of blowing up Venezuelan boats linked to drug cartels and the ratcheting up of pressure on Maduro: "But one of the U.S. officials, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters, said that Admiral Holsey had raised concerns about the mission and the attacks on the alleged drug boats."
I think we all need to understand that this is a very serious move. You don't just remove a four-star commander, or he doesn't just step down, unless the lack of trust between him and Secretary of War Hegseth and President Trump might place U.S. lives at risk or hamper national strategy. This kind of thing has happened before. In 1987, my very first brigade commander, General Fred Woerner, was commander of USSOUTHCOM. He was fluent in Spanish, his wife was Argentine, and the Latin Americans loved him. As President George H. W. Bush began increasing pressure on Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega, it became apparent that Woerner had "gone native." He was no longer viewed as the man who could be trusted to represent U.S. policy and seemed to be dragging his feet and objecting to the idea of removing Noriega. Bush fired him on October 1, 1989, and on December 20 of that year, we invaded Panama.
A career herbivore like Holsey is not the man you need firing missiles at speedboats, running B-52s toward Caracas, or running covert operations against narco-terrorists; see President Trump Unleashes the CIA on Venezuela and Signals Ground Operations Are Very Likely – RedState. You need a meat-eater. Holsey's replacement will tell us a lot about what comes next in Venezuela.
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