{"id":2422043,"date":"2025-04-10T11:36:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-10T15:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-administration-removes-kash-patel-army-secretary-named-acting-atf-director\/"},"modified":"2025-04-10T11:36:35","modified_gmt":"2025-04-10T15:36:35","slug":"trump-administration-removes-kash-patel-army-secretary-named-acting-atf-director","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-administration-removes-kash-patel-army-secretary-named-acting-atf-director\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Administration Removes Kash Patel, Army Secretary Named Acting ATF Director"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-administration-removes-kash-patel-army-secretary-named-acting-atf-director%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2422043&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>FBI Director Kash Patel has been removed from his temporary position as the acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and replaced by Army Secretary Dan Driscoll. This change, which was not publicly announced, is notable as it appoints a civilian military leader to head a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/border-patrol-chief-resists-biden-i-cannot-comply-with-demand-to-use-non-legal-immigration-terms\/\" title=\"Border Patrol Chief Resists Biden: \u2018I Cannot\u2019 Comply With Demand To Use Non-Legal Immigration Terms\">federal law enforcement agency<\/a>. While Patel&#8217;s performance was not cited as an issue for his removal,the change aligns with ongoing discussions within the justice Department about potentially merging the ATF with the Drug Enforcement Management. A White House representative stated that Patel&#8217;s appointment was a standard, temporary designation while awaiting Senate confirmations and that he continues to excel in his position with the FBI. the National Shooting Sports Foundation has praised Driscoll&#8217;s appointment, seeing it as a move toward regulatory reform in the ATF that supports Second Amendment rights.Neither patel nor Driscoll has publicly commented on this leadership transition.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>FBI Director Kash Patel has been removed as acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.<\/p>\n<p>He was replaced as acting director by Army Secretary Dan Driscoll in a switch that was not publicly announced, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/04\/10\/trump-patel-driscoll-atf-director\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Axios<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Axios called it an &ldquo;unusual move to place a civilian military leader in charge of a federal law enforcement agency,&rdquo; noting that Driscoll will be the director of ATF while also holding down his post as Army secretary.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;ATF&nbsp;can confirm the change in leadership to Acting Director Daniel Driscoll,&rdquo; a representative of the agency said.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/justice-department-puts-russian-mastermind-global-crime-operation-behind-bars\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Justice Department<\/a> official said the change had nothing to do with Patel&rsquo;s performance leading the FBI, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/kash-patel-removed-acting-atf-director-replaced-by-army-secretary-sources-say-2025-04-09\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Reuters<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Director Kash Patel was briefly designated ATF Director while awaiting Senate confirmations &mdash; a standard, short-term move. Dozens of similar re-designations have occurred across the federal government,&rdquo; White House representative Harrison Fields said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Director Patel is now excelling in his role at the FBI and delivering outstanding results,&rdquo; the statement from Fields continued.<\/p>\n<p>The change comes as officials in the Justice Department are considering the effect and possible efficiencies of merging the ATF with the Drug Enforcement Administration.<\/p>\n<p>A report in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/04\/09\/us\/politics\/patel-army-secretary-atf.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New York Times<\/a> said the decision to sever the connection between Patel and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/just-got-second-best-news-possible-atf-get-ready-ultimate-shakeup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ATF<\/a> came not long after<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-kash-patel-confirmed-fbi-director-tight-senate-vote\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> Patel&rsquo;s February confirmation<\/a> to lead the FBI.<\/p>\n<p>The report indicated Driscoll&rsquo;s status as a Senate-confirmed appointee was a factor in his selection.<\/p>\n<p>The Times referred to Driscoll as &ldquo;close to Vice President J.D. Vance&rdquo; and said that Driscoll was handed the reins of the ATF within the past week.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll replaced Kash Patel as acting head of ATF operations. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/YzBx4e5GXf\">pic.twitter.com\/YzBx4e5GXf<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; &#120138;&#120120;&#120131;&#120139;&#120144; &#120126;&#120128;&#8477;&#120131; (@SaltyGirl09) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SaltyGirl09\/status\/1910115331546247378?\">April 9, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>In a statement on its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nssf.org\/articles\/nssf-congratulates-new-atf-acting-director-daniel-driscoll\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">website<\/a>, the National Shooting Sports Foundation praised the move.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;President Trump&rsquo;s decision to appoint Acting Director Driscoll is indicative of his resolve to bring reform to the ATF and protect the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens and the industry that makes it possible to exercise those rights,&rdquo; NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;NSSF is deeply appreciative of FBI Director Kash Patel&rsquo;s service to lead the ATF as Acting Director for nearly two months in his interim role and the recognition, along with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, that the ATF was weaponized by the previous administration to carry out a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fact-checking-joe-bidens-gun-control-rhetoric-7-false-claims-the-president-has-made-on-firearms\/\" title=\"Fact-Checking Joe Biden\u2019s Gun Control Rhetoric: 7 False Claims The President Has Made On ...\">radical gun control agenda<\/a>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The firearm industry is confident that President Trump&rsquo;s appointment of Acting Director Driscoll to lead the ATF will return the bureau to its proper role as a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">law enforcement agency laser focused<\/a> on combatting violent crime and illegal firearms trafficking, and to act as a non-partisan regulator of the firearm industry,&rdquo; he concluded.<\/p>\n<p>Neither Patel not Driscoll have made public comments about the change in their roles.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FBI Director Kash Patel has been replaced as the acting head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives by Army Secretary Dan Driscoll in a change that was not publicly disclosed, as reported by Axios. The outlet described this transition as &#8220;unusual,&#8221; noting that Driscoll will oversee the ATF while continuing his role as Army secretary. An ATF representative confirmed Driscoll&#8217;s appointment, while a Justice Department official stated that Patel&#8217;s performance at the FBI was not a factor in this decision<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2422044,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Patel-v-Driscoll.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[48892,53187,50902,44864,3634],"class_list":["post-2422043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-administration-changes","tag-army-secretary","tag-atf-2","tag-kash-patel","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Patel-v-Driscoll.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2422043","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2422043"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2422043\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2422047,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2422043\/revisions\/2422047"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2422044"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2422043"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2422043"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2422043"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}