TRUMP LOYALISTS NAMED TO DEFENSE BOARD

The Trump administration installed loyalists on a Pentagon advisory panel Friday, naming former campaign officials Corey Lewandowski and David Bossie among the new appointees to the Defense Business Board.

The appointments were announced along with the dismissal of other members. Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller, appointed to his job last month after the firing of Mark Esper, said in a statement that he was “proud” to welcome each of the new members and looked forward to their contributions to help guide the Defense Department’s business efforts in coming years.

“These individuals have a proven record of achievement within their respective fields and have demonstrated leadership that will serve our Department, and our nation well,” Miller said in a statement.

The decision injects partisanship into a board that is rarely discussed outside the Defense Department and defense industry. Lewandowski and Bossie worked together on the Trump presidential campaign in 2016 and later co-authored a memoir titled “Let Trump Be Trump.”

Michael Bayer, who was ousted as chairman of the board, said he was informed of the administration’s decision to dismiss him with a form letter that was emailed to him on Friday morning. He said he does not know the politics of most of the board’s members and that they have typically operated in a nonpartisan manner.

Bayer said there was room to add new members on the board without removing anyone else.

By charter, the board has up to 25 members, and it has been expanded to include up to 35 in the past, he said. Before Friday, it had 16 members, according to its website.

The changes could be short-lived. The board reports to the defense secretary, allowing the Biden administration to handle the appointees as it sees fit beginning in January.

The dismissals also include vice chairman Atul Vashistha, Arnold Punaro, John O’connor, David Venlet, Paul Dolan, Scott Dorn, David Walker and David Van Slyke. The Pentagon statement said they were “serving in expired positions” or that their “tenures were terminated.” Bayer said that at least some of the ousted members had nearly a year left on their terms.

The other new appointees include Henry Dreifus, Robert Mcmahon, Cory Mills, Bill Bruner, Christopher Shank, Joseph Schmidt, Keary Miller, Alan Weh and Earl Matthews.