Hung Cao
A former Vietnamese refugee with a 25-year military career, Cao transitioned from unsuccessful political runs in Virginia to a top executive role under the Trump administration. Instagram / Hung Cao

The Pentagon has seen its most dramatic leadership shift to date as the civilian head of the fleet stepped down amid a sweeping administrative overhaul.

John Phelan, the private equity billionaire appointed by Donald Trump, resigned as US Navy Secretary on Wednesday, 22 April 2026. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell confirmed John Phelan's resignation in a brief statement, noting the exit was 'effective immediately'.

The move ends a 13-month tenure marked by significant investment but dogged by a billionaire Navy Secretary controversy regarding his lack of prior military service.

Taking the helm as Hung Cao, acting Navy Secretary, the administration has pivoted to a decorated Navy combat veteran to steady the service. This transition occurs at a critical juncture for the Department of Defense, as officials grapple with a massive US Navy leadership shake-up that has already claimed several top-tier military heads.

'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,' Parnell wrote on X. 'We wish him well in his future endeavours. Undersecretary Hung Cao will become Acting Secretary of the Navy.'

Hung Cao's New Role Sparks Controversy

Cao's previous remarks about polarising issues have resurfaced, prompting speculation over his new role. A 25-year Navy combat veteran, Cao has been known for his hardline stance on national security issues. During his 2024 Senate bid against Tim Kaine, he compared Joe Biden's administration to Cold War Vietnam.

'We are losing our country,' he declared in a campaign video. 'You know what, Joe Biden's right, democracy is under attack. The problem is he's the son of a b*** that's doing it... When President Trump was in office, we had peace. Under Joe Biden, the world is on fire.

Cao also slammed the military's diversity efforts during a debate. 'When you're using a drag queen to recruit for the Navy, that's not the people we want,' he asserted. 'What we need is alpha males and alpha females who are going to rip out their own guts, eat them and ask for seconds. Those are the young men and women that are going to win wars.'

He also criticised the US's spending priorities when the US entered the Russia-Ukraine war. 'My heart goes out to the Ukrainian people,' he said, 'But right now we're borrowing $55 billion from China to pay for the war in Ukraine. Not only that, we're depleting our national strategic reserves.'

Cao's military career includes tours of duty in Iraq, Somalia, and Afghanistan. He studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University after building a life in the US in the 1970s as a child refugee from Vietnam.

Phelan's Exit Follows a String of High-Profile Dismissals

Phelan's departure marks the first exit of a military service chief in President Donald Trump's second term. It aligns with a broader Pentagon shake-up under Pete Hegseth, including recent dismissals of Army chief Randy George, Lisa Franchetti, Charles Q. Brown Jr., and several other military higher-ups.

Phelan was a previous adviser to Spirit of America, a nonprofit that supports aid initiatives for Ukraine and Taiwan. A major donor to Trump's campaign, he had no military or defence leadership experience before his 2024 nomination. The day before his exit, he spoke at a Washington conference, where he discussed shipbuilding and budget priorities with industry leaders and Navy personnel.

According to Fox News, the US Navy's operating budget was £192.6 billion ($260 billion) in 2025. Cao will oversee the department, which enlists nearly 1 million sailors, Marines, reservists, and civilian personnel.

As Hung Cao takes the oath as Acting Secretary, the focus shifts to whether he can bridge the gap between the administration's political goals and the operational needs of the sailors on the front line. The Pentagon has yet to signal if a permanent nominee will be named shortly or if Cao will lead the department through the remainder of the current fiscal year. For now, the 'effective immediately' era of the US Navy has begun, trading the boardroom for the battlefront.

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