US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is preparing to leave the Trump administration after what a new report has described as months of tension with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, potentially triggering another change at the army’s top echelons.
According to the Friday report by The Wall Street Journal, Driscoll is expected to step down before the end of the year and could leave his post earlier. The newspaper cited people familiar with discussions over his departure.
The Journal reported that Driscoll and his family vacated the official residence assigned to the army secretary at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall this summer, a move that could indicate he was preparing to leave the position.
The reported departure would come at a time of continuing uncertainty at the top echelons of the army.
Hegseth abruptly removed Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George in April, while Trump has not yet nominated a permanent successor. Gen. Christopher LaNeVe, who previously acted as Hegseth’s senior military aide, is currently carrying out the chief of staff’s responsibilities in an acting capacity.
Earlier report linked Driscoll to tensions inside Department of War
An April report by the New York Post had described a controversial aspect of the relationship between Hegseth and Driscoll, alleging that Hegseth was increasingly consumed by “paranoia” over the possibility that he could eventually be replaced by Driscoll.
Citing current and former administration officials, the report said concerns over Driscoll’s standing within Trump’s orbit had contributed to Hegseth’s decisions involving several senior military officials, including George, Gen. David Hodne and Maj. Gen. William Green.
At the time, a source cited by the Post said, “[Hegseth’s] been told by the White House he can’t fire Driscoll, at least for the moment,” adding, “So what Pete has been doing is taking anyone he perceives to be close with Driscoll and going after them.”
If Driscoll leaves before the end of the year, the army would face another change in its senior civilian leadership, while its top uniformed position also remains under acting leadership.
The overall situation governing the army comes after the United States radically failed in the February 27-April 8 unprovoked aggression that it waged in conjunction with the Israeli regime against Iran to supposedly overthrow the country’s Islamic establishment and irreversibly damage its military might.
The failure took place amid reports of Hegseth’s “misleading” Trump about the trajectory of the aggression and some senior army officials differing with the secretary of war over the latter’s insistence on portraying the aggression as a recipe for success.
