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Army Secretary Driscoll Stepping Down 09/01 06:20
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, the
White House said Monday, in the latest departure of a top military leader
during the Trump administration.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18
months on the job, the White House said Monday, in the latest departure of a
top military leader during the Trump administration.
No reason was given for the departure of Driscoll, who is a friend of Vice
President JD Vance, but tensions with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have been
widely reported. It marks the latest in a series of shakeups of the military
leadership, with the Army especially seeing major upheaval.
"Secretary Driscoll has been highly effective in advancing President Trump's
agenda to Make America Strong Again at the Department of the Army by providing
outstanding leadership during historic military operations, restoring an
emphasis on readiness and lethality, assisting with negotiations between Russia
and Ukraine, and more," White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement.
"The United States Army is more powerful than ever thanks to his work
alongside the Commander-in-Chief and Secretary of War," she added.
A U.S. Army official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke
on condition of anonymity, said Driscoll spoke with President Donald Trump on
the current state of the Army and submitted his resignation. The official did
not provide additional details. The Pentagon referred questions to the Army.
Driscoll's resignation was reported earlier Monday by The Wall Street Journal.
Exit follows other Army departures, rollback of drone program
Driscoll's departure follows the ouster of one of his allies from the Army
as well as the rollback of a drone program he had championed. Hegseth had
suddenly ousted the service's top uniformed leader, Gen. Randy George, in
April, while the Army's commander in Europe and Africa, Gen. Christopher
Donahue, unexpectedly stepped down in June.
Gen. Christopher LaNeve, who has made a meteoric rise under Hegseth, took
George's place as the Army's acting chief of staff. Under LaNeve, the service
is pulling the plug on a drone modernization program. An Army unit based in
Europe was building its own drones before LaNeve directed it to end its efforts
and return to being a traditional infantry battalion, officials said in August.
Driscoll was a George ally and lamented his departure, along with both
Republican and Democratic lawmakers. He told Congress in April that he and his
family drove to George's house following his resignation "and we all gave him a
hug."
"That being said, the civilian leadership, the design of our system, is that
they get to pick the leaders that they want," Driscoll added.
Republicans and Democrats respond to departure news with praise for Driscoll
Rep. Steve Womack, an Arkansas Republican who had served in the Army
National Guard, said on X that Driscoll is "a transformative leader who brought
common sense and discipline to the Department of the Army."
"I had the pleasure of working with him closely, and appreciated how engaged
he was from mentoring cadets at West Point to leading the Army at the
Pentagon," Womack wrote. "The Army is better equipped and prepared to tackle
emerging threats because of his leadership that strengthened the force while
putting our Soldiers first."
Rep. Jason Crow, a Colorado Democrat and former Army Ranger, told reporters
that he worked well with Driscoll despite their policy differences.
"It was actually nice, I will say, having somebody who was smart, that knew
the policy, that wanted to do the work, that had a background in these issues,"
Crow said, adding that "it's unfortunate that somebody like that can't last in
this administration."
Crow, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee and co-chairs the
House Army Caucus, said the "Pentagon right now is, in some cases, rudderless,"
with so many senior leaders gone. "So, I'm gravely concerned about it," he said.
Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed
Services Committee, said in a statement that Driscoll "worked to transform the
Army for the battlefield of the future, and he engaged with Congress candidly
and consistently."
"Secretary Hegseth is cultivating a culture where dissent is punished and
competence is secondary to personal allegiance," said Reed, a former Army
officer, while noting that "hundreds of thousands of soldiers are deployed
around the world, many in combat zones."
Driscoll was an unlikely negotiator in Ukraine-Russia war
Driscoll is an Iraq war veteran, tech investor and former adviser to Vance,
whom Driscoll met at Yale Law School. When nominating Driscoll in 2024, Trump
called him "a disruptor and change agent."
As Army secretary, Driscoll was tapped for the unusual role of key
negotiator to try to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. He was also a
major force behind trying to cut the red tape for military contractors to
quickly develop more drones and counter-drone capabilities as warfare rapidly
changes around the world.
The Senate confirmed him in February 2025, voting 66-28, following an Armed
Services Committee hearing that was largely unconfrontational and focused on
how the Army could modernize its systems, improve recruiting and beef up the
military industrial base.
Driscoll noted that his father and grandfather served in the Army, and he
vowed to be a secretary focused on the needs of soldiers. According to the
Army, Driscoll served as an armor officer from August 2007 to March 2011,
deploying to Iraq from October 2009 to July 2010.
He also ran unsuccessfully in the Republican primary for a North Carolina
congressional seat in 2020, getting about 8% of the vote in a crowded field of
candidates.
His departure comes after Hegseth ousted several other generals and
admirals, including the head of the Navy.
The Pentagon abruptly announced in April that Navy Secretary John Phelan was
leaving the job, becoming the first head of a military service to depart during
Trump's second term.
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