US army secretary resigns amid signs of Pentagon unease with Iran war
The US Army's top civilian leader, Dan Driscoll, has submitted his resignation, the White House confirmed on Monday, following reports of tensions with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
"Driscoll has been highly effective in advancing President Trump's agenda to Make America Strong Again at the Department of the Army," Anna Kelly, the White House deputy press secretary, said in a statement on Monday.
"The United States Army is more powerful than ever thanks to his work alongside the Commander-in-Chief and Secretary of War,” she added.
Driscoll’s departure comes at a time of signs there is unease in the Pentagon over how the Trump administration is prosecuting the war on Iran.
The heads of the army, navy and air force, and the four-star commanders overseeing US operations throughout Europe, Asia and Latin America, warned Hegseth that any prolonging of major operations would weaken the US’s ability to confront other foes, the Washington Post reported on Monday.
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The Associated Press reported earlier this month that the war on Iran has caused a "beyond critical" shortage of advanced missile interceptors, especially Patriots, which have been used to shoot down Russian ballistic missiles in the Ukraine war.
The US has also exhausted its stockpile of sophisticated long-range missiles and has “virtually" used up its supply of surface-to-surface weapons, including ATACMS and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM), Reuters reported.
An army veteran who served in Iraq, Driscoll ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2020 and later advised Trump's 2024 re-election campaign. He was an ally of General Randy George, the army chief of staff fired by Hegseth in April. While he has reportedly clashed with the former, he was seen as benefiting from his ties to former law school classmate, Vice President JD Vance.
Vance is seen as standing on the isolationist wing of the Republican Party. He took a visible lead negotiating with Iran in the springtime, in talks hosted by Pakistan in Islamabad. In July, he accused Israel of “manipulating” US public opinion in a bid to keep the war going.
Hegseth, in contrast, has emerged as one of the most visible defenders of the war, giving feisty press conferences where he has scolded journalists about their coverage of the conflict.
Vance is widely considered to be a 2028 presidential hopeful, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Middle East Eye reported in March that Rubio and Hegseth were described as “at each other's throats” over the question of whether the US should deploy troops to Iran at Israel’s request. Hegseth was supportive of the position at the time, while Rubio was wary of entangling the US in a long war, the sources told MEE.
Driscoll’s departure effectively leaves the army without permanent civilian or uniformed leadership as the Iran war grinds into its seventh month.
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