President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he is nominating Hung Cao to serve as secretary of the Navy.
“I am pleased to nominate a true WARRIOR, Hung Cao, to become the next Secretary of the Navy,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, urging the Senate to confirm Cao “ASAP.”
Cao is a retired Navy captain and combat veteran who has embraced the president’s push to reshape the military. He has served as acting Navy secretary since April, when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ousted then-Navy Secretary John Phelan, further shaking up the Pentagon’s senior leadership amid the war in Iran.
Cao previously served as undersecretary of the Navy, the department’s second-highest-ranking civilian official. His nomination to permanently lead the Navy requires Senate confirmation.
He brings more than two decades of military experience to the role. A U.S. Naval Academy graduate, he served as a Navy diver and explosive ordnance disposal officer, deploying to combat zones including Iraq and Afghanistan before retiring as a captain in 2021.
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Ebony Davis is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked at CNN as a campaign reporter covering elections and politics.