The next is the transcript of the interview with Military Secretary Dan Driscoll that aired on “Face the Country with Margaret Brennan” on Nov. 16, 2025.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We need to flip now to one of the most demanding situations confronted through the U.S. army, and we are joined through the Secretary of the Military, Dan Driscoll. Just right morning, thanks for being right here.Ā
SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY DAN DRISCOLL: Thanks such a lot for having me.Ā
MARGERET BRENNAN: So much to get to with you. Simply briefly on information of day, the president did say he “type of” made up his thoughts on Venezuela. I do know that is the Marines, that is the Army which are deployed. However does the Venezuelan military pose any more or less risk to the U.S. if motion is taken?
SEC. DRISCOLL: I believe that the President and Secretary of Struggle have spent numerous time desirous about what’s the highest factor they are able to do for the American folks, and I will talk from the Military’s viewpoint, which is, we’ve got numerous coaching in that a part of the sector. We are reactivating our jungle college in Panama, we might be able to behave on regardless of the president and Sec. Struggle wanted.
MARGARET BRENNAN: However no orders past those workout routines at this level?
SEC. DRISCOLL: I- we do not discuss the ones types of issues, however we might be able if requested.
MARGARET BRENNAN: I do need to ask you about what has been taking place with this shutdown. The federal government’s now funded via January 30, you probably did get from Congress complete 12 months investment for veterans affairs and armed forces development, a couple of different measures on this quick time period invoice. However we’ve got observed the shutdown hit army bases and hit army households. Expensive. $400 million or extra in emergency loans from USAA. How do you insulate the power in order that the following shutdown does not hit those households how it did this time.Ā
SEC. DRISCOLL: I believe the shutdown is indicative of one of the vital larger issues that we have got a country have had. And so when you glance again for the remaining 30 or 40 years, one of the vital causes now we have had such dangerous results, once we spend the American taxpayers hard-earned bucks, and we move purchase issues that our infantrymen will wish to combat, once we construct issues the place our infantrymen and their households will are living, we’re any such dangerous buyer, as a result of if you end up at the different facet of the maintain us and you’ve got to maintain shutdowns. I imply, this shutdown will take months and months for us to get again and happening those tasks. And this is a part of the calcification of our device that beneath President Trump, we’re uniquely in a position to check out to move after numerous these items and in reality get our military and their households dwelling in higher spaces, and get our infantrymen able for the trendy combat. And the shutdown does no longer lend a hand.Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you concerning the fashionable combat. Tom Cotton, who’s the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, instructed our Olivia Gazis right here at CBS that the risk to army websites and massive civilian gatherings “is serious and rising.” He cited gaps in legislation enforcement government, a few of them lapsed throughout the shutdown, I perceive, and he is speaking about looking to shut enforcement gaps in the case of drones. What authorizations do you wish to have?
SEC. DRISCOLL: So beneath Secretary of Struggle Hegseth, the US Military has been put in control of the counter drone risk for the Pentagon, after which we’re running hand in fist- or hand in glove with the wider legislation enforcement companies. We simply remaining week had a gathering proper outdoor the White Space the place what we’re looking to do, as a result of this drawback isn’t like just about the rest now we have confronted in a very long time. This is a flying IED. And so this IED–Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: IED, the explosive–
SEC. DRISCOLL: IED, improvised explosive tool. They are affordable. You’ll be able to 3-d print them at house, they usually go borders extremely briefly. And so what you principally want is a virtual layer to interchange knowledge and alternate sensing and make allowance the nearest individual at the flooring, or the nearest effector at the flooring, with the intention to take out a drone. And Senator Cotton is true. I imply, that is the specter of humanity’s lifetime. What is going on in Ukraine, what is taking place in Russia, when you have a look at the rate and scale of the devastation that may come from drones, we as a federal executive have were given to steer on it. However I am actually positive. That is in reality one thing we’re doing proper. We’re partnering with each federal legislation enforcement, in a few weeks, we are having the Sheriff’s Affiliation come. We have been simply on the NYPD. We are together with the entire other legislation enforcement companies, desirous about the borders and the ports and the impending NFL video games and Olympics and Global Cup. Like that is one thing we as a country can lead on. And so beneath President Trump’s management, we’re transferring rapid at this drawback.
MARGARET BRENNAN: And that is about radar jamming of drones to take them out, no longer exploding them.
SEC. DRISCOLL: So the issue with the drone combat is you wish to have all types of layered protection. One answer does no longer paintings. If you happen to simply attempt to jam them- when you have a look at what is taking place in Ukraine, folks have began to arduous twine drones, and so you’ll’t do RF jamming on a troublesome twine drone. And so there are such things as web weapons which are coming again, we are the use of all types of answers and gear, and it makes it much more difficult. If you find yourself through an airport and you are doing it for your personal hometown, you simply have other government. And so numerous this can be a human drawback of conversation, command and regulate and having a layered set of answers that you’ll use for any given drawback.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So you are speaking about right here on the hometown, such things as the U.S. internet hosting the Olympics, the Global Cup, even simply the Tremendous Bowl, video games which are arising. Must there be restrictions on this nation on who is in a position to personal and perform drones?
SEC. DRISCOLL: I am lovely positive that we will determine an answer the place we can know what’s within the sky at each second throughout our nation, abruptly. And so when you recall to mind the President’s–Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: We aren’t there but.
SEC. DRISCOLL: We aren’t there but, however beneath the President’s Golden Dome, I might consider this like a golden mini dome, the place, when you took one of the vital websites for the Global Cup, we’re closely interested in with the ability to see the entirety within the space, have the entire interceptors we can want, have the entire coaching for the entire other forces that can have with the intention to act. And to be able to your explicit query, I believe we’re looking to design a device in order that American citizens are in a position to fly drones, in order that business firms, like Amazon- like the way forward for supply, in numerous tactics, is business drones. And so we can simply need to de-conflict the skies, running with the FAA. However this can be a large matter. I take a look at in with Secretary of Struggle Hegseth in this nearly weekly.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So once we remaining noticed the President of Ukraine, Zelenskyy, on the White Space, he introduced as much as President Trump, on digicam, now we have were given nice drones we need to promote to the US or supply to the US. You referred to Ukraine because the “best Silicon Valley of war” at this time. What do you imply through that? Are they actually forward of the US on innovation?
SEC. DRISCOLL: I believe when you have a look at what is taking place, Operation Spider’s Internet in Russia, the Ukrainians used almost definitely a pair hundred thousand bucks value of drones and took out nearly $10 billion value of kit in Russia. And Russia’s in that combat. And so I believe what is fantastic about our nation is we’re in a position to acknowledge the place we wish to innovate briefly. And what we are doing for drones, utterly in a different way, I believe, than we’ve got achieved as a military in almost definitely 50 or 60 years, is we’re welcoming in American business. So we simply did an AI warfare recreation the place we invited 15 of the highest CEOs within the country. They have been value almost definitely $18 trillion in endeavor price. And we stated, good day, are you able to please lend a hand us? What do you may have for your tech innovation pipeline to lend a hand us with information in contested environments? How will we do logistics 6,000 miles away if we are going through an enemy who is looking to contest us? And we’re running with them, no comic story, day by day, to principally take their innovation and use it on this drawback.
MARGARET BRENNAN: However what I heard you announcing there’s, you have a look at the battlefield in Ukraine as more or less like a take a look at lab for the place war goes. Are you able to persuade a few of your fellow Republicans that there’s price in that combat, in the case of, you recognize, those that are so isolationist they do not need to be interested in Ukraine, even financially?Ā
SEC. DRISCOLL: Smartly, I do not believe I have talked to a unmarried one who has stated we should not be studying from what is going on in Ukraine. All of our apparatus, the entire beautiful options we can want, are definitionally going to come- the knowledge set that the Ukrainians are getting for his or her generative AI fashions of when they’ve drones and they are flying and they are studying and they are doing counter drone and they are taking all of this data from their sensors and making an attempt to determine what is going on. There may be no longer a unmarried individual I do know that does not assume this is an improbable treasure trove of knowledge for long term war. I believe numerous the questions are, how will we in reality execute at the President’s time table of peace in that a part of the sector. The place- I’ve no longer been to the White Space, the place it has no longer arise that we simply need peace in order that the American business base can thrive all over, and we need to center of attention on that a part of the sector unnecessarily at this time.Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: Smartly, you are on the Division of Struggle.Ā
SEC. DRISCOLL: Sure.Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: So that you introduced that the military desires to shop for 1,000,000 drones over the following two to a few years. Army, Marines, Air Power, they’re going to clearly be very interested in any warfare within the Pacific, however you have to protect the ones American bases.Ā
SEC. DRISCOLL: Sure.Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: So how do you recall to mind the risk from China there? As a result of I have learn that you just assume they are forward of The united states.
SEC. DRISCOLL: So we are running on one thing with Congress referred to as SkyFoundry. And principally the theory is to, once more, do it proper from the start. What the military has traditionally gotten fallacious within the remaining couple of a long time is, we are both all in or all out, that means we both use our natural business base and we make the drones ourselves, or we are saying, that is too difficult for us, we are going to have personal business do it. We aren’t doing that with drones. As a result of when you glance at- Ukraine is production 4 million a 12 months, China, I believe, is at 12 to fourteen million drones a 12 months.Ā
MARGARET BRENNAN: Wow.Ā
SEC. DRISCOLL: And we as a country must have our personal sector in a position to lend a hand us. And so what we’re going to do is, we’re going to spend money on such things as sensors and brushless motors and circuit forums and numerous the parts which are actually arduous for the personal sector to get at this time. The US Military goes to construct the ones on our bases and empower the personal sector to buy from us. And so we can make drones, our personal companions will make drones, and we can catch up and surpass the Chinese language extremely briefly.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Secretary, thanks to your time. And I do need to make the purpose that you’re taking questions, and that’s abnormal at the present time, because the Pentagon has limited get right of entry to to journalists. And we predict it is important right here that the American folks listen about their very own safety in addition to the army’s 3 million or extra workers. So thanks. We will be proper again.
