Non-veteran business leader Phelan set to lead US Navy after Senate approval

The US Senate confirmed John Phelan to serve as the next Secretary of the Navy, making him only the seventh non-veteran to hold the position in the past 70 years.

Phelan, the founder of the private investment firm Rugger Management LLC, was approved by a 62-30 vote, with nearly all of his support coming from Republicans. He is expected to be sworn into the role in the coming days, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

Phelan, who was the first service secretary nominee announced by President Donald Trump, becomes the second such nominee to be confirmed, following the approval of Daniel Driscoll as Army Secretary last month with a similar partisan vote of 66-28.

While Phelan lacks military experience, he has emphasized that his business background qualifies him to lead the Navy and Marine Corps. During his confirmation hearing on February 27, Phelan acknowledged the Navy's need for reform and innovation, citing several systemic issues within the service.

“The US Navy is at [a] crossroads, with extended deployments, inadequate maintenance, huge cost overruns, delayed ship building, failed audits, subpar housing and, sadly, record high suicide rates,” he told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “These are systemic failures that have gone unaddressed for far too long. Frankly, this is unacceptable.”

He further explained that his lack of military experience would allow him to challenge traditional military thinking and approach the role with fresh perspectives.

“The Navy and the Marine Corps already possess extraordinary operational expertise within their ranks,” he said. “My role is to utilize that expertise and strengthen it, step outside the status quo and take decisive action with a results-oriented approach.”

In addition to his leadership, Phelan will have former Virginia Senate candidate and Navy special operations veteran Hung Cao as his undersecretary. Cao, who was sworn in earlier this month, brings significant Navy experience to the team.

Meanwhile, the Senate Armed Services Committee is set to hold a confirmation hearing this week for Trump’s third service secretary nominee, Troy Meink, who has been tapped to lead the Air Force.

The Navy remains without an official in its top uniformed leadership position. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, the Navy’s first female chief, was dismissed by President Trump last month as part of a Pentagon leadership shakeup.

By Vafa Guliyeva