Chuck Hagel announced his decision to step down from his position as the United States’ Defense Secretary on Monday following reports that the White House was pushing him to resign.

Chuck Hagel Resigning

Hagel said in a statement that his two years as the Defense Secretary had been a “great privilege of my life to lead and most importantly to serve the men and women of the defense department.”

Obama, who accepted Hagel’s resignation, said in a press conference, “If there’s one thing I know about Chuck, it’s that he does not make this or any other decision lightly,” adding to Hagel, “When it’s mattered most behind closed doors, in the Oval Office, you’ve always given it to me straight. For that, I will always be grateful.”

Prior to the statements made by Hagel and Obama, reports began swirling early Monday morning that the president had asked Hagel to step down following the midterms. The POTUS, following weeks of meetings with Hagel, asked him to resign last Friday, according to a report in The New York Times. Apparently, Obama feels that Hagel’s skill set, while appropriate for scaling down the wars, is not as useful for the looming threat of ISIS.

Sen. John McCain, upon learning of Hagel’s resignation, suggested that it may have been his growing frustration with the Obama administration that led to the decision.

“I know that Chuck was frustrated with aspects of the Administration’s national security policy and decision-making process,” McCain said in a statement. “His predecessors have spoken about the excessive micro-management they faced from the White House and how that made it more difficult to do their jobs successfully. Chuck’s situation was no different.”

As of yet, there’s been no word on whom Obama plans to nominate to fill Hagel’s shoes. Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, former Undersecretary of Defense Michele Flournoy and former Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton B Carter are all thought to be contenders.

Hagel will remain on the job until a replacement is confirmed.