It was confirmed by US officials on Wednesday that FBI Director Kash Patel was replaced by Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll as the acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Reuters was first to report the leadership change, which the US Justice Department had not disclosed publicly. As of Wednesday afternoon, Patel’s photo and title of acting director was still listed on the ATF’s website.

Patel was sworn in as acting ATF leader on February 24, three days after he was sworn in as FBI director, a role he continues to hold. It was unusual for one person to be tapped to lead to major Justice Department units at the same time.

A Justice Department official confirmed Patel’s removal and said it had nothing to do with his job performance. The official did not say why Patel was removed.

US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll is now serving as acting ATF director, the Justice Department official said. Three other sources familiar with the decision said Driscoll will continue to hold both roles.

It is unclear when Patel was formally removed from his post or when Driscoll was notified of his new responsibility. Driscoll was traveling on Wednesday, and was in the Middle East earlier this week.

President Donald Trump’s second term has featured multiple whipsaw policy reversals, including the firing and rehiring of large numbers of federal workers and on Wednesday the temporary lowering of tariffs on many countries, less than 24 hours after steep new taxes on imports kicked in.

Senior Justice Department officials are currently weighing whether to merge the ATF with the US Drug Enforcement Administration as part of an effort to cut costs.

Gun rights focus

Attorney General Pam Bondi, who has made protecting gun rights a key part of her agenda, has launched a task force to focus on enforcing the Second Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects the right to bear arms, according to a memo seen by Reuters.

She said the ATF would serve on the task force along with representatives from other parts of the Justice Department, including the Civil Rights Division.

Trump previously ordered the department to review a slew of firearms regulations implemented during Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration.

The ATF earlier this week formally repealed its so-called “zero tolerance policy” which called for revoking the licenses of gun dealers who willfully committed serious violations, such as failing to conduct background checks.

The Monday press release included a quote from Patel as acting director.

It is unclear how the leadership change at ATF could affect the way it regulates the firearms industry, or why Driscoll was tapped to lead it.

The NSSF, the industry’s leading trade association, in a statement on Wednesday said the decision to name Driscoll was “indicative of his resolve to bring reform to ATF and protect the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.”

Patel’s initial appointment as acting ATF director shocked career insiders at the department.

When Patel was sworn in as FBI director on February 21, he posed for a photograph with the White House’s counterterrorism adviser Sebastian Gorka.

Gorka then posted the photo on his X account with a since-deleted message which read: “Oh, by the way, meet the new Director of the ATF. Yes. Seriously.”

No one at the ATF knew about Trump’s plans to install Patel, five current and former ATF officials familiar with the matter said at the time.

On the day of his swearing in, Patel spent about an hour at ATF headquarters where he urged staff to focus on arresting violent gang members, two of those officials told Reuters.

He had not been a presence at headquarters since, according to four current and former officials.

The leadership vacuum at the agency tasked with investigating firearm, bomb and arson-related crimes has worried current and former law enforcement officials who say its weakened state could impede efforts to protect public safety and make it more vulnerable to regulatory cuts that could hinder its ability to investigate violent gun-wielding criminals.

“To see them in the situation they’re in now is just really heartbreaking,” said Peter Forcelli, a former ATF assistant director who spent much of his career investigating gangs and other criminal organizations.

“The fact they’re getting kicked around like a soccer ball is to me just incredibly disrespectful.”