Previous to Military Secretary Dan Driscoll submitting his resignation Monday, Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell had been recommended by some near Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth as a possible substitute for the Senate-confirmed place.
The Hill reported final week that Parnell’s identify was being floated, citing two unnamed sources acquainted with the matter.
Requested in regards to the reviews, a senior Administration official instructed TIME: “Sean Parnell is 100% centered on the job he was appointed to by President Trump and Secretary Hegseth.”
Information of Driscoll’s departure from the function he held for round 18 months got here after months of reported tensions with Hegseth and turmoil throughout the division.
In response to the Atlantic, an individual acquainted with Driscoll’s resignation stated he had not too long ago “introduced up issues with the Administration surrounding Military transformation and readiness and Hegseth’s blocking these efforts particularly by firing the generals who had been accountable.”
White Home spokesperson Anna Kelly didn’t handle the tensions and fallout when approached by TIME, however as a substitute emphasised that the USA Military is “extra highly effective than ever because of [Driscoll’s] work alongside the Commander-in-Chief and Secretary of Struggle.”
Driscoll’s resignation is the most recent in a collection of high-profile departures throughout the Pentagon, following the April ouster of the Military’s prime uniformed chief, Gen. Randy George, and the June departure of the lead commander in Europe and Africa, Gen. Christopher Donahue.
The Washington Publish reported that Hegseth had sought to take away George a number of instances and that Driscoll had beforehand blocked or delayed these efforts, arguing that George had finished nothing improper and ought to be judged on benefit.
Alongside the reported tensions, Hegseth has additionally come underneath severe scrutiny for the length and mounting price of the Iran battle, which surpassed the six-month mark final week.
“I don’t have any confidence in him anymore. I feel he’s everywhere—he’s accelerating the retirement or forcing out a number of the most distinguished leaders within the DOD that we now have,” Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina stated in July.
In the meantime, underneath Parnell, the Division of Protection has imposed numerous restrictions limiting journalists’ entry within the Pentagon.
In an unprecedented transfer in June, the division designated its press workplace a categorised space.
“The Pentagon Press Workplace has been redesignated as a Delicate Compartmented Info Facility because of speechwriters from the Workplace of the Secretary of Struggle sharing the ability,” stated deputy Pentagon press secretary Joel Valdez. “Consequently, journalists will not be permitted to enter the workplace area. There’s nothing controversial about that.”
Now, with speak turning to who could exchange Driscoll within the pivotal function of Military Secretary, Parnell’s identify continues to be floated. Notably, whoever is chosen would must be confirmed for the place by the Senate.
Right here’s what to learn about Parnell, his army report, previous controversies, and extra.
Parnell is an Afghanistan veteran who penned a memoir on his expertise
Parnell arrived in Afghanistan in 2006 and through his 16-month deployment was awarded two Bronze stars and the Purple Coronary heart. He was deployed alongside his platoon, nicknamed the Outlaws.
He returned residence with shrapnel in his leg and a mind harm that had left him with imaginative and prescient issues.
Following retirement on medical grounds, he penned a 2012 battle story memoir titled Outlaw Platoon, in partnership with creator John R. Bruning, detailing his experiences within the area.
Parnell went on to grow to be a senior advisor for the Involved Veterans of America and is credited with enjoying a key function within the passage of the Mission Act in 2018 underneath President Donald Trump, with the aim of delivering care and help for U.S. veterans.
Parnell beforehand criticized Trump earlier than changing into a staunch supporter
Parnell backed now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination the place he confronted off in opposition to Trump, who went on to win each the nomination and presidency.
In response to Parnell, his help for Rubio, who on the time was a Senator in Florida, was cemented by his vocal backing of issues associated to Veterans Affairs (VA).
“There are many sturdy choices. But when fixing the VA, rebuilding our army, and doing proper by our veterans is a prime precedence for you, then Senator Rubio ought to be your first and solely alternative,” Parnell stated in a marketing campaign press launch.
In a separate interview, he described Rubio as a “unifying voice” who the nation “desperately wants” and labeled him “my man.”
Against this, Parnell had known as out Trump in 2015, referring to his criticism of the late Republican Sen. John McCain, a prisoner of battle, as “the peak of vanity,” arguing that Trump had “no clue what our Vietnam POWs endured.”
Nonetheless, Parnell had a change of coronary heart as soon as Trump took workplace, stating in a 2019 interview that the President had earned his respect “as a result of he forces us to speak about points. Political correctness doesn’t enable us to speak about them.”
On the 2020 Republican Nationwide Conference, Parnell additional praised Trump, insisting he had “unleashed the financial would possibly of this nation like no different President in our historical past.”
Parnell suspended his marketing campaign for Senate amid abuse allegations
Parnell, after working unsuccessfully for the Home in 2020, went on to launch a bid because the GOP Senate candidate in Pennsylvania. He suspended his Trump-backed marketing campaign in November 2021, after shedding a struggle for custody of his kids to his then-estranged spouse, who had accused him in court docket of abuse.
Laurie Snell had alleged that Parnell choked her and injured their kids. Parnell vehemently denied the claims.
Snell additionally testified in court docket that Parnell had been untrue.
Following Trump’s announcement in February 2025 that Parnell was tapped to grow to be chief spokesperson for the Pentagon, some media protection noticed the abuse allegations revisited.
If Parnell had been put ahead for a Senate-confirmed place sooner or later, the historic allegations may very well be introduced up in his affirmation listening to.
