Army Secretary Driscoll out after clashing with Hegseth over fired generals and Army readiness

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll submitted his resignation to President Trump on Monday, the White House confirmed, ending an 18-month tenure marked by repeated friction with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over personnel firings, drone modernization and the Army's readiness posture six months into the war with Iran. The departure strips the service of its top civilian at a moment when the Army has significant forces deployed across the Middle East and the Pentagon's leadership ranks have thinned considerably.

Driscoll had resigned after just 18 months on the job. Hegseth had fired top generals during that period, leading to friction between them. A source familiar with the matter told CNN 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."

Driscoll was an Army officer in Iraq and became the youngest-ever Army secretary last year at age 38. As the Army's civilian leader, he oversaw its annual budget and a workforce of over 1 million active-duty, National Guard and reserve soldiers, along with over 330,000 civilian employees. He was nominated by Trump and drew bipartisan support during his confirmation - 16 Democrats backed him.

Months of friction, then a breaking point

NBC News reported last week that Driscoll had told close associates he wanted to leave the administration by Labor Day. He visited the White House last week to discuss his future, according to three U.S. officials, but it was not clear what came of the meeting.

The tensions with Hegseth were not new. In February, multiple outlets reported that Hegseth had forced the ouster of one of Driscoll's senior advisers, Col. David Butler, who was also the former spokesperson for Trump foe Gen. Mark Milley. Fox News reported that Driscoll resisted Hegseth's pressure to fire Butler. That standoff came first. The deeper dispute was over generals.

Earlier this year, Hegseth fired Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George and two other generals. George and Driscoll had worked closely together. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle repeatedly questioned Hegseth on the firings and voiced their admiration for George. Before Congress in April, Driscoll joined them, saying there is "no person that has more respect for Gen. George and his 42 years of service."

An Army official confirmed to CNN that Driscoll "spoke to the president about the current state of the Army and submitted his resignation." The White House, for its part, issued a glowing send-off. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly praised Driscoll's "outstanding leadership during historic military operations, restoring an emphasis on readiness and lethality, assisting with negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, and more," and added that "The United States Army is more powerful than ever thanks to his work alongside the Commander-in-Chief and Secretary of War."

The statement did not address the substance of Driscoll's internal concerns.

A Pentagon in constant churn - during an active war

Driscoll's resignation is seen as significant because it is part of a constant churn at the Pentagon under Hegseth, which has continued as the Iran war plays out with no end in sight. The Army is not the only service hit. Hegseth fired Army Chief of Staff Randy George in April; the Army's commander in Europe and Africa, General Christopher Donahue, unexpectedly stepped down in June. The Pentagon abruptly announced in April that Navy Secretary John Phelan was leaving the job, making him the first head of a U.S. military service to depart during Trump's second term.

Driscoll's departure comes six months into the Iran war, which shows no signs of ending. That timing matters on Capitol Hill. The Army has ground forces throughout the Middle East, and senators on the Armed Services Committee have already signaled they want answers about succession planning and who will now oversee Army personnel decisions and the service's modernization budget.

Driscoll, nicknamed "drone guy" for his work on military modernization, had a meteoric rise in the Trump administration after the president nominated him Army secretary. His exit leaves that modernization agenda without its chief advocate inside the Pentagon's civilian leadership.

Gas prices, Venezuela oil, and the war's domestic toll

Driscoll's resignation landed on the same day Trump convened a separate emergency meeting at the White House on a second front of the Iran war's fallout: gas prices. Trump met with oil refining executives at the White House on Tuesday to discuss gas prices, hours after American forces struck Iranian targets around the Strait of Hormuz for the second time in three days.

AAA puts the national average for regular gasoline at about $4.10 a gallon, roughly 90 cents higher than a year ago. Diesel now averages more than $5.60 a gallon. Executives from at least 10 companies were invited, including Chevron, Marathon Petroleum, Valero and Phillips 66.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hosted the meeting, which was also attended by Vice President Vance and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. Rising energy prices have become a huge political problem for the Trump White House and Republican lawmakers in Congress holding on to slim majorities in a midterm election year.

The White House is also leaning on a longer-term play to rebuild supply. The U.S. struck a deal to take majority control of more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuela's oil reserves, announced last week, nine months after the U.S. military abducted President Nicolás Maduro in a raid on Caracas. The deal gives the Department of Defense a 35% stake in a joint U.S.-Venezuelan private company holding 100-year leases to 17 oil fields, and gives the U.S. the right to buy some of the oil produced at cost. The agreement would operate through a private Venezuelan oil producer called North American Blue Energy Partners, with the U.S. Department of Defense owning a 55% stake in the oil production.

But analysts are not predicting immediate relief at the pump. Experts told The Hill that producers who may want to pump Venezuelan oil could face significant hurdles, including physically getting infrastructure set up. Brent crude jumped 3.8% to $94.36 a barrel Tuesday afternoon following the latest U.S. strikes.

On the Hill: Massie and Khanna revive Epstein fight

Congress returned from recess to more than just the spending clock. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., named more than a dozen people he described as alleged Jeffrey Epstein "coconspirators" on the House floor Monday as he renewed his push to force the government to disclose millions of records connected to the convicted sex offender.

Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., introduced the "Epstein Files Transparency Act II," with Massie citing that "it's been a year since the president signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and the government continues to withhold over three million files." Massie said separately on X that he had begun collecting the 218 signatures necessary for a discharge petition to force a House vote.

The Justice Department says it complied with the original law by publishing nearly 3.5 million pages, over 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, claiming that material withheld from the public included duplicate records, privileged information, statutory exceptions and material unrelated to the Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell cases. Massie disputes that characterization.

Massie made his accusations during an Aug. 31 floor speech, citing the protections afforded by the Constitution's Speech or Debate Clause, which broadly shields members of Congress from civil or criminal liability for legislative statements. Whether leadership lets the bill reach the floor without a discharge petition is an open question. Speaker Mike Johnson has not publicly weighed in.

What to Watch

• Army Secretary succession: The White House has not named an acting Army secretary. Watch for whether Trump nominates a civilian quickly or allows the position to remain vacant - an unusual gap with Army forces deployed in the Middle East. The Senate Armed Services Committee is likely to demand a briefing.
• Hegseth and Congress: Driscoll, who has been well regarded by many Republicans and Democrats, leaves Hegseth more exposed on Capitol Hill. Expect Republican senators who backed Driscoll's confirmation to press Hegseth on Army readiness in the weeks ahead.
• Gas prices and the midterms: The most expensive Labor Day on record is underway, with gas prices "probably at least 15 cents a gallon" higher than any prior Labor Day, according to GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan. Tuesday's refiner meeting produced no public commitments on price cuts.
• Epstein discharge petition: Massie needs 218 signatures. The last time he tried this, he got them. Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., told Spectrum News he is "not interested in grandstanding," suggesting the path to 218 may be harder this round - but the floor speech has already injected named individuals into the congressional record.
• Venezuela oil deal scrutiny: Trump did not disclose the structure of the agreement, the fields or companies involved, nor how the U.S. would exercise majority control over the reserves. Congressional oversight committees have yet to schedule hearings.

Sources: NPR | CNN | NBC News | Axios | The Hill | Daily Caller | CNBC | The Hill (Massie) | Spectrum News | Fortune