House Republicans on Thursday threw their support behind Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and lamented the recent ouster of the service’s top general, making a rare public break with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after his repeated clashes with senior Army leaders.
House Democrats offered some similar sentiments, but the plaudits from conservative lawmakers at a hearing of the House Appropriations Committee’s panel on defense appeared intended to buttress Driscoll’s standing in the Republican Party.
The rivalry between Hegseth and Driscoll dates to at least last spring, when a series of missteps by Hegseth fueled speculation within the Pentagon that President Donald Trump might replace him with Driscoll. Hegseth has since been cool in his public support for Driscoll, and others aligned with the defense secretary have questioned whether Driscoll is fully supportive of Trump’s agenda.
Rep. Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, told Driscoll at the outset of the hearing that he thought the Army secretary is doing an “outstanding job” and thinks he will be a “transformational leader” for the service at a time when that is needed.
“You are the right person, in the right place, at the right time,” Cole said of Driscoll, who led an Army cavalry scout platoon during the Iraq War and later worked in venture capital. “I appreciate the energy. I appreciate the practical experience in uniform, as well as what you bring from your experience out of uniform.”
Cole added that he would not ask Driscoll to address Hegseth’s decision this month to remove Gen. Randy George, who worked closely with Driscoll, but said the general was an outstanding chief of staff of the Army and has his admiration.
Thursday’s hearing occurred as tensions between Driscoll and Hegseth appeared to reach a crescendo this month after the abrupt ouster of George and two other Army generals, the latest in a string of senior military leaders who Hegseth has either fired or forced into retirement — often with little or no public explanation. While past defense secretaries have on occasion fired service secretaries with whom they disagree, Driscoll appears to be held in well regard at the White House and is a close friend and former Yale Law School classmate of Vice President JD Vance, officials have said.
Driscoll, in a statement first reported by The Washington Post, said this month that serving under Trump “has been the honor of a lifetime” and “I have no plans to depart or resign as the Secretary of the Army.”
Cole’s comments about George’s removal were echoed by several other lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, with some questioning Hegseth’s unwillingness to explain why George was forced into retirement well ahead of his expected departure late next year.
Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii) said that he had high confidence in George and blamed Trump, Hegseth and Driscoll collectively for deciding to “summarily fire the chief of staff of the Army — publicly, overtly and I would even say humiliating and cruelly, without any offer, apparently, of a graceful exit.”
The administration, Case said, owes “Congress, the public, and I think, most importantly, the soldiers some explanation” and has “compounded numerous issues, including morale, uncertainty and distrust, and I do not believe that is acceptable, or should be acceptable.”
Since last year, Hegseth repeatedly voiced interest in removing George from his job, but Driscoll was able to short-circuit those moves, officials have said. Driscoll and George became close over the year-plus that they worked together at the Pentagon, finding common cause in overhauling the Army for future conflict and traveling together to Ukraine last fall in part to gather lessons learned from the war there, officials said.
Driscoll said in response to Case that he was in North Carolina with his family during his children’s spring break when George was asked to submit his resignation paperwork. Driscoll and his family drove straight to the general’s house when they returned to Washington and “we all gave him a hug,” he said.
“There is no person that has more respect for General George and his 42 years of service, his Purple Heart, his wife Patty, their grandkids, their kids,” Driscoll said. “I adore them.” A few minutes later, Driscoll added: “Just to wrap back up: I, too, love General George.”
But Driscoll, who did not directly address his relationship with Hegseth, added that an administration’s civilian leaders pick the military leaders they want “and we execute on those orders.” He praised Gen. Christopher LaNeve, George’s acting replacement and potential successor, as a patriotic leader with a legacy in the Armed Forces and said the service has “amazing leaders all over the world who can step in at a moment’s notice and keep fighting for the Army.”
Spokespeople for Hegseth and the Army could not be immediately reached for comment. Hegseth’s office has previously disputed assertions that there is any tension between him and Driscoll.
Rep. Steve Womack (R-Arkansas), a retired colonel in the Army National Guard, said he “wholeheartedly” agreed with Cole’s praise for Driscoll and shared disappointment for how George was treated. He said George was a “distinguished representative of our Army, and I, too, regret the fact and conditions he left the service in, and I think our country will regret that circumstance.”
Driscoll was asked by Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-California) to address Hegseth’s decision to block the promotion of numerous Army officers — including two women, two Black men and Col. David Butler, a prominent Army public affairs officer despite Driscoll and other Army leaders having supported their advancement.
As The Post reported previously, George sought a meeting with Hegseth to discuss the issue and was denied. The general was removed a few days later.
Driscoll told Aguilar that Army officers are selected by fellow soldiers, with a list being passed up to the Army secretary and then the defense secretary’s office and, finally, the White House. He said he was not certain specifically who was included on the list that has since been sent by the White House to the Senate for confirmation.
“The promotion from colonel to one-star general is an incredibly difficult process. I think only 4 percent get through,” Driscoll said. “Soldiers meet, soldiers make their decisions, and out comes a list from that soldier-led promotion process. That comes to me to review to ensure the process was done correctly — which it was. And I pass forward the list.”
Aguilar asked Driscoll if he has ever struck a name from a promotion list, and the Army secretary said he has not.
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