Army Secretary Dan Driscoll submits resignation after tension with Hegseth
CNN
By Haley Britzky, Kristen Holmes, Kevin Liptak, CNN
(CNN) — Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has submitted his resignation to President Donald Trump, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
One source said the decision was unsurprising given tension between Driscoll and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
A second source familiar said that in his resignation, Driscoll “brought up concerns with the administration surrounding Army transformation and readiness and Hegseth’s blocking those efforts specifically by firing the generals who were responsible.”
An Army official said Driscoll “spoke to the president about the current state of the Army and submitted his resignation.”
The departure of Driscoll, an Army veteran and longtime friend of Vice President JD Vance, has been long rumored and comes after months of friction with Hegseth. It also comes six months into the Iran war, which shows no signs of ending.
It’s unclear when Driscoll will officially leave the role; typically, the under secretary of the Army would step in as the acting secretary. The current under secretary is Mike Obadal, a retired Army colonel and special operations aviator.
“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 spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement.
CNN has reached out to the Army for additional comment. The Wall Street Journal first reported on Driscoll’s departure.
Earlier this year, Hegseth fired the Army chief of staff, Gen. Randy George, and two other generals. George and Driscoll worked closely together.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle repeatedly questioned Hegseth on the firing and voiced their admiration for the general. And before Congress in April, Driscoll joined them in saying there is “no person that has more respect for Gen. George and his 42 years of service, his Purple Heart, his wife Patty, their grandkids, their kids.”
“I adore them,” Driscoll said at the time. “And he was an amazing, transformational leader.”
Nearly from the beginning of Hegseth’s tenure, multiple sources previously told CNN, the secretary has been distrustful of officials around him — civilian and military alike — and suspicious about their loyalties.
One of the most prominent examples of infighting throughout Hegseth’s tenure has been with Driscoll, often due to the close relationship Driscoll and Vance. CNN has reported that Hegseth has viewed Driscoll’s relationship with the White House as an effort to go around him.
Driscoll and Vance were classmates at Yale Law School and have remained close friends. The young Army secretary also formed his own relationship with Trump, which was apparent when he was tapped by the president last year to help persuade Ukraine to return to the negotiating table for talks with Russia.
Where Hegseth’s tenure has thus far largely been defined by his aggressive stance on so-called culture war issues, Driscoll and George publicly appeared focused largely on modernizing Army forces and equipment. Trump even took to referring to Driscoll as the “drone guy” given his extensive work on the technology.
Hegseth — who served in the Army National Guard for nearly 20 years — has taken particular interest in the Army and its leadership. He has fired or forced out several key leaders in the service, including George, former Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. James Mingus, the head of Army Transformation and Training Command Gen. David Hodne, the Chief of Chaplains Maj. Gen. William Green Jr. and Director of the Joint Staff Lt. Gen. Douglas Sims.
Most recently, Gen. Christopher Donahue, the highly respected commander of US Army Europe and Africa stepped down from his role as Hegseth had not yet nominated him for a new position. Multiple sources told CNN that there had been tension between the offices of Hegseth and Donahue, though not necessarily between the two men. Donahue officially retired last week.
This story has been updated with additional information.
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CNN’s Zachary Cohen contributed to this report.
