WASHINGTON — Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s “paranoia” about Army Secretary Dan Driscoll taking his job fueled the firing of the Army’s top general, current and former administration officials tell The Post — as a top contender emerges to replace Driscoll if he’s canned next.
Hegseth on Thursday demanded the resignation of Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George’s — Driscoll’s top aide — in the middle of the Iran war for reasons that were not publicly stated, following months of mounting tensions with Driscoll.
“This is all driven by the insecurity and paranoia that Pete has developed since Signalgate. Unfortunately, it is stoked by some of his closest aides who should be trying to calm the waters,” an official said, referring to Hegseth’s March 2025 group chat with national security officials that inadvertently included a reporter.
Two other Army generals — Gen. David Hodne of the Army’s Transformation and Training Command and Maj. Gen. William Green of the Army’s Chaplain Corps — were dismissed in the purge, with the department only saying “it was time for a leadership change.”
“[Hegseth] has got a big conflict with Driscoll. And he’s been told by the White House he can’t fire Driscoll, at least for the moment,” a source close to the Trump administration said.
“[Hegseth] is very concerned about being fired and he knows that Driscoll is one of the top contenders, or a natural contender, to succeed him. So what Pete has been doing is taking anyone he perceives to be close with Driscoll and going after them. And this is the latest and most spectacular [example] of that.”
Driscoll is a close friend of Vice President JD Vance, with whom he attended Yale Law School after both men served in the Iraq War. His name was floated as a possible Hegseth successor last summer and the Pentagon boss’s suspicions deepened last fall when Driscoll served as a Ukraine war negotiator.
“This is not just one of those things where Pete is focused on DEI. That’s not what this is about. He keeps going after the Army in particular,” the second person said.
“Essentially Hegseth has frozen him out and tried to sideline him behind the scenes. Hegseth wants to fire him, but Vance has his back.”
The paranoia isn’t entirely without merit — with President Trump publicly praising Driscoll’s performance last year. The Army secretary role served as a springboard during Trump’s first term when Mark Esper vaulted from the service branch to replace fired James Mattis as defense secretary.
John Ullyot, a Marine Corps veteran who served in national security roles in both of Trump’s administrations, told The Post that Driscoll “is the real deal, and Hegseth can’t stand when Army generals show Driscoll the respect he has earned through his service.”
Hegseth spox could replace Driscoll
An administration official said that Hegseth’s top spokesman Sean Parnell is “pushing himself” to be Army secretary if Driscoll is ultimately fired.
Parnell was awarded the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart for his service in Afghanistan and a Department of War colleague said he would be an obvious option if a vacancy emerges.
“Sean is focused on the job he has now, as is Army Secretary Driscoll. It wouldn’t be out of line to speculate that Sean would be considered as a successor as he is one of the highest profile Army veterans serving at the top of [the] department right now,” the department official said.
“But both men are focused on serving the president and doing the job they had now.”
An Army official added to The Post that “it’s very normal to think that Sean Parnell has a shot to be the successor to Driscoll if Driscoll were to leave.”
“Sean Parnell is humble. He’s a humble leader,” this official said.
Parnell did not specifically address his own future, but claimed that Hegseth has an “excellent” relationship with Driscoll.
“Secretary Hegseth maintains excellent working relationships with the secretaries of every military service branch, including Army Secretary Dan Driscoll,” Parnell told The Post.
‘Under Hegseth’s skin’
There’s no indication that Trump is prepared to immediately dismiss either Hegseth or Driscoll, but the clash heightens the stakes for each.
Trump’s recent cabinet shuffles — including firing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last month and Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday — has amplified the jockeying, with insiders saying it couldn’t come at a worse time as Trump tries to project strength to end the Iran war.
The Iranian government trolled the US on social media Friday, writing, “The regime change happened successfully” with X marks over images of military brass who had been fired.
The second source said that Driscoll’s fleeting role in Ukraine negotiations in November was an important inflection point.
“Pete got very paranoid about Driscoll talking behind his back to others in the military. The final straw for Pete was when Vance got Driscoll to go over to Ukraine to be the chief negotiator for that one meeting,” the source said.
“It’s really gotten under Hegseth’s skin. He’s trying to make everyone around [Driscoll] suffer for no reason.”
This person noted “the optics of firing the Army’s top general the day after the president spoke to a skeptical public” about the Iran war.
“This undermines completely the tone and the message that the president wants to send that the war is going well,” he said.