Dan Driscoll Is Stepping Down As U.S. Army Secretary

According to Axios, U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down from his post, multiple reports said. Driscoll, the youngest Army secretary in U.S. history, had taken on a diplomatic role in talks aimed at ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, and White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said he had been highly effective in advancing President Trump's agenda at the Department of the Army. The article said Driscoll oversaw the Army's annual budget and a workforce of more than 1 million active-duty, National Guard and reserve soldiers, along with more than 330,000 civilian employees. It also said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not warm to Driscoll, while Driscoll's friendship with Vice President JD Vance offered him some protection. The New York Times reported that tensions between Hegseth and Driscoll included a dispute over removing four officers — two Black men and two women — from a promotions list, and multiple outlets reported in February that Hegseth had forced out one of Driscoll's senior advisers, Col. David Butler. In November, Driscoll traveled to Ukraine to present a U.S. peace plan, and after meeting with him, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky agreed to negotiate.