Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan is leaving the administration, effective immediately, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday.
Sean Parnell, assistant to the secretary of war for public affairs, made the announcement on X. “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,” he said.
Undersecretary Hung Cao will become acting secretary, Parnell said.
The Pentagon did not provide a reason for Phelan’s sudden departure. Cao will assume full acting authority over the Department of the Navy and its Marine Corps component.
The Pentagon did not immediately return a request for comment by The Epoch Times.
Trump, who had endorsed Cao in that race, had heralded him as “the embodiment of the American dream,” noting his background as a refugee.
Cao and his family fled Vietnam just days before the fall of Saigon in 1975 and came to the United States. He attended the U.S. Naval Academy and earned his master’s degree in physics from the Naval Postgraduate School. He was also a fellow with MIT Seminar XXI and Harvard Kennedy School. During his 25 years of service, he served as a special operations officer in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia and also held non-combat roles at the Pentagon.
The pairing of Phelan and Cao was intended to blend civilian business expertise with operational military insight at the top of the service.
Phelan had participated in high-profile initiatives, including the announcement of the “Golden Fleet” modernization push alongside Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Those programs remain priorities under the new acting leadership.
Cao’s biography has long resonated with voters interested in immigrant success stories and strong national defense credentials. His selection as undersecretary reflected the administration’s emphasis on elevating experienced service members into senior civilian oversight roles.
Phelan, 62, came to the job from the business world rather than uniform service. Phelan is co-founder and chairman of Rugger Management, a private investment firm based in Palm Beach, Florida, and a major donor to Trump’s 2024 reelection campaign.
He was the first person in more than 15 years to lead the Navy without having served in any branch of the U.S. military. His connection to the military was through an advisory role for Spirit of America, a nonprofit that works with troops and diplomats to deliver humanitarian aid to conflict zones.
Bill Pan and Samantha Flom contributed to this report.
