Pentagon fires Navy Secretary John Phelan after months of tensions With Hegseth

The Pentagon has dismissed Navy Secretary John Phelan. Through a statement released by War Department spokesman Sean Parnell, it confirmed that he would be temporarily replaced by Hung Cao, currently undersecretary of the Navy. The news came just a day after Phelan participated in the Navy's annual conference in Washington, DC, where he laid out his agenda for the Navy before sailors, industry professionals and journalists.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Phelan’s ouster followed “months of tensions” with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. It also comes weeks after Hegseth removed the Army’s top officer, Gen. Randy George.

Prior to being confirmed by the Senate for the post, Phelan had no prior experience in the military. Instead, he has a long history in the private sector. He was chairman of the firm Rugger Management LLC and a major donor to Donald Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign.

Parnell, a spokesman for the War Department, confirmed Phelan's departure on his X account: "Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan is departing the administration, effective immediately. On behalf of the Secretary of War and Deputy Secretary of War, we are grateful to Secretary Phelan for his service to the Department and the United States Navy. We wish him well in his future endeavors."

In addition, the official announced that Cao would take Phelan's position on an interim basis. Age 54 and born in Vietnam, the new acting secretary of the Navy is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. He served for more than 30 years in the Navy, being deployed in Iraq, Somalia, and Afghanistan.

In October 2021, he decided to retire to begin his political career. As a Republican, he ran for the House of Representatives in 2022 and the Senate in 2024. Despite failing to win either election, his candidacy against Tim Kaine brought him national attention. After a flashy speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention, he managed to narrow the margin and garner 45% of the vote in the election, four points more than the Republican candidate who ran against Kaine in 2020.