Army Secretary Dan Driscoll on Drones, Readiness and Lessons from Ukraine — Face the Nation (Nov. 16, 2025)

Highlights from Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll on "Face the Nation" — Nov. 16, 2025

MARGARET BRENNAN: We're shifting now to challenges facing the U.S. military. Joining us is Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll. Good morning — thank you for coming on.

SECRETARY OF THE ARMY DAN DRISCOLL: Thank you for having me.

Venezuela and regional readiness

MARGARET BRENNAN: The president said he "sort of" made up his mind on Venezuela and the Navy and Marines are deployed. Does Venezuela's army pose a threat to U.S. forces if action is taken?

DRISCOLL: The administration and Defense leadership have weighed options to protect the American people. From the Army's perspective, we maintain significant training in the region, we are reactivating our jungle school in Panama, and we would be prepared to support whatever the president and Defense leadership request.

Impact of the shutdown on service members and families

MARGARET BRENNAN: The government is temporarily funded through Jan. 30. The shutdown hurt bases and military families — over $400 million in emergency loans were reported. How can you prevent future shutdowns from harming families?

DRISCOLL: The shutdown exposed long-standing procurement and project-management weaknesses. Contractors and suppliers suffer when the government is an unreliable customer, and construction and housing projects can take months to restart. Under the current administration, we're pursuing reforms to improve troop readiness and family housing, but interruptions from funding lapses undermine that progress.

Growing drone threat and countermeasures

MARGARET BRENNAN: Sen. Tom Cotton warned the threat to military sites and large civilian gatherings "is severe and growing," citing enforcement gaps and drone risks. What authorizations or capabilities does the Army need?

DRISCOLL: The Army has been given the lead for aspects of the Pentagon's counter-drone effort and is coordinating closely with federal, state and local law enforcement. The problem is unlike many we've faced — it's essentially a flying improvised explosive device (IED). These systems are inexpensive, can be 3D‑printed, cross borders quickly, and require a digital, shared sensing-and-targeting layer so the closest responder can act.

Driscoll: "This is one of the defining threats of our time — look at Ukraine and Russia for examples of the speed and scale of damage drones can inflict."

He emphasized layered defenses rather than a single solution: radar and RF jamming, nets, kinetic interceptors and non‑kinetic options all have roles. Authorities and safety constraints differ near airports and in civilian areas, so command-and-control and interagency coordination are critical. The Army is engaging the Sheriff's Association, NYPD and other agencies to prepare for major events such as the NFL season, the World Cup and the Olympics.

Balancing civilian drone use and national security

MARGARET BRENNAN: Should the U.S. restrict who can buy or operate drones for homeland events?

DRISCOLL: The goal is to build a nationwide system to know what's in the sky at every moment and to de-conflict commercial and security uses with the FAA. We want to preserve legitimate commercial uses — including future delivery services — while ensuring robust defenses for large events and critical infrastructure.

Lessons from Ukraine and technology partnerships

MARGARET BRENNAN: You described Ukraine as the "only Silicon Valley of warfare." What did you mean?

DRISCOLL: Ukraine's experience shows how relatively low-cost drones can inflict outsized effects. Driscoll cited examples where small investments in drones produced massive battlefield impact. The Army is accelerating partnerships with U.S. industry and tech leaders: it recently ran an AI-focused wargame with top CEOs to explore data, logistics and contested-environment solutions. These industry collaborations aim to adapt commercial innovation for military needs.

Production plans: SkyFoundry and a million drones

MARGARET BRENNAN: You said the Army plans to buy a million drones over 2–3 years and that China and Ukraine produce drones at high volumes. How will the U.S. catch up?

DRISCOLL: The Army is developing a program called SkyFoundry to combine in-house production of critical components (sensors, motors, circuit boards) with private-sector manufacturing. The plan is to create a reliable supply of hard-to-get parts on Army sites and enable industry partners to assemble and scale production, allowing the U.S. to rapidly increase capability and outpace competitors.

Closing

Driscoll thanked reporters for access and reiterated the importance of public awareness about military readiness and the well-being of the military community.

Note: Terms in the interview were standardized to reflect current civil-military nomenclature (e.g., "Defense leadership" and "Secretary of the Army"). All substantive claims are presented as described by Secretary Driscoll during the interview; production and cost figures were reported by Driscoll and are presented as his estimates or comparisons.