Army Secretary Dan Driscoll submits resignation
Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll has submitted his resignation to President Donald Trump, DefenseScoop has confirmed.
The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the move Monday.
“The Secretary spoke to the President about the current state of the Army and submitted his resignation,” an Army official told DefenseScoop.
A service spokesperson said the Army had no comment.
Fox News reported Monday evening that Trump had not yet accepted the resignation.
“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. The United States Army is more powerful than ever thanks to his work alongside the Commander-in-Chief and Secretary of War,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement.
Driscoll’s move to resign follows reports of long-standing tensions between the Army boss and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, including over Hegseth’s removal of Gen. Randy George as Army chief of staff earlier this year as well as other service leaders.
If accepted by the White House, Driscoll’s resignation would mean that the Army will be without a Senate-confirmed civilian leader amid renewed fighting in the Iran war, in which the service has been at the forefront of defending against Tehran’s missile and drone attacks.
Michael Obadal is the undersecretary of the Army and could serve as acting secretary if Driscoll’s resignation is accepted.
As the Army’s top civilian, Driscoll endeavored to make the force learner and more tech-focused through his Army Transformation Initiative.
He spearheaded the service’s drone and counter-drone marketplaces, Operation Jailbreak — an effort to get the Army’s disparate military systems to connect, taking lessons from Ukrainian innovation — and several other efforts meant to tap into a broader swath of the defense industry and commercial products for military use.
Early in his tenure, he was critical of prime contractors, but later said he had “over-blamed” them for their role in the Army’s historic technological problems.
He’s also known for his colorful language in public remarks, such as when he said a Dronebuster weapon was “fucking terrible.”
Driscoll is an Iraq war veteran who worked in venture capital and private equity before Trump nominated him to lead the Army during his second term. Driscoll is a Yale Law School graduate and is reportedly close with Vice President JD Vance. He was previously seen as a potential successor to Hegseth if Trump decided he wanted a new SecDef.
When asked for comment about Driscoll’s move to resign, public affairs officials with the Office of the Secretary of Defense referred DefenseScoop to the Army.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
