US Navy Secretary Fired, Reportedly Over Bypassing Chain of Command to Pitch Directly to Trump
US Navy Secretary John Phelan has been fired and replaced by acting Secretary Hung Cao, reportedly due to tensions arising from bypassing the Defense Secretary to propose shipbuilding plans directly to President Trump.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 23, 2026 at 12:45
- 🔍 Collected: April 23, 2026 at 13:01 (16 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 23, 2026 at 16:35 (3h 34m after Collected)
Central News
(CNA, Washington, 22nd, Comprehensive Foreign Dispatch) As the ceasefire situation between the United States and Iran is tense and Washington is deploying more naval power to the Middle East, news of a change in the US Navy Secretary has broken. US officials and informed sources revealed today that Navy Secretary Phelan was fired and will be succeeded by the Navy's number two civilian official, Hung Cao, as acting secretary.
The Pentagon announced in a brief statement that John Phelan's departure is "effective immediately," but did not state the reason or whether he resigned voluntarily.
According to consolidated reports from Reuters, the Wall Street Journal, and CNN, multiple US officials said Phelan was dismissed after months of tense relations with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. A senior administration official said President Trump agreed with Hegseth's decision, believing the Navy needed new leadership.
According to two people familiar with internal discussions, Pentagon officials informed congressional staff today that Hegseth made the cut partly because he and Deputy Secretary of War Steve Feinberg believed Phelan was moving too slowly and ineffectively on President Donald Trump's shipbuilding plans.
Other sources pointed out that Phelan had long-standing poor relations with Hegseth, Feinberg, and Deputy Navy Secretary Hung Cao.
Three people familiar with the matter said the friction included tension arising from Phelan's close relationship with Trump. It was revealed that Phelan frequently chatted with Trump at the Mar-a-Lago club, not far from his Florida home; last year, he even told members of Congress that he would text the president late at night to discuss shipbuilding issues.
The aforementioned sources pointed out that Pentagon top brass were particularly dissatisfied that Phelan pitched a new warship building plan directly to Trump last autumn without Hegseth's consent.
Not only Phelan, but Hegseth has repeatedly clashed with several other top Pentagon officials. Since taking office, Hegseth has replaced nearly 20 high-ranking military officers, including Army Chief of Staff Randy George, who was dismissed on April 2 this year, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, who was fired last year.
In addition, Hegseth has been at loggerheads with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll since early last year.
Phelan is an entrepreneur with no previous military background. Before being appointed Navy Secretary in 2025, he and his wife had raised millions of dollars for Trump's campaign.
Just the day before he was dismissed, Phelan spoke at a large industry conference, emphasizing his achievements during his tenure, including the Navy meeting its recruitment goals ahead of schedule and accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).
He said at the time: "We are reforming the way this department operates... However, organizational and cultural reforms and fleet modernization efforts are still in their early stages." (Translated by: Tsai Chia-min) 1150423
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(CNA, Washington, 22nd, Comprehensive Foreign Dispatch) As the ceasefire situation between the United States and Iran is tense and Washington is deploying more naval power to the Middle East, news of a change in the US Navy Secretary has broken. US officials and informed sources revealed today that Navy Secretary Phelan was fired and will be succeeded by the Navy's number two civilian official, Hung Cao, as acting secretary.
The Pentagon announced in a brief statement that John Phelan's departure is "effective immediately," but did not state the reason or whether he resigned voluntarily.
According to consolidated reports from Reuters, the Wall Street Journal, and CNN, multiple US officials said Phelan was dismissed after months of tense relations with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. A senior administration official said President Trump agreed with Hegseth's decision, believing the Navy needed new leadership.
According to two people familiar with internal discussions, Pentagon officials informed congressional staff today that Hegseth made the cut partly because he and Deputy Secretary of War Steve Feinberg believed Phelan was moving too slowly and ineffectively on President Donald Trump's shipbuilding plans.
Other sources pointed out that Phelan had long-standing poor relations with Hegseth, Feinberg, and Deputy Navy Secretary Hung Cao.
Three people familiar with the matter said the friction included tension arising from Phelan's close relationship with Trump. It was revealed that Phelan frequently chatted with Trump at the Mar-a-Lago club, not far from his Florida home; last year, he even told members of Congress that he would text the president late at night to discuss shipbuilding issues.
The aforementioned sources pointed out that Pentagon top brass were particularly dissatisfied that Phelan pitched a new warship building plan directly to Trump last autumn without Hegseth's consent.
Not only Phelan, but Hegseth has repeatedly clashed with several other top Pentagon officials. Since taking office, Hegseth has replaced nearly 20 high-ranking military officers, including Army Chief of Staff Randy George, who was dismissed on April 2 this year, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, who was fired last year.
In addition, Hegseth has been at loggerheads with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll since early last year.
Phelan is an entrepreneur with no previous military background. Before being appointed Navy Secretary in 2025, he and his wife had raised millions of dollars for Trump's campaign.
Just the day before he was dismissed, Phelan spoke at a large industry conference, emphasizing his achievements during his tenure, including the Navy meeting its recruitment goals ahead of schedule and accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).
He said at the time: "We are reforming the way this department operates... However, organizational and cultural reforms and fleet modernization efforts are still in their early stages." (Translated by: Tsai Chia-min) 1150423
Choose to stand with the facts. Every sponsorship from you is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the CNA 'First News' APP to grasp the latest news instantly.
The text, images, and audio-video on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.