US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth fired Navy Secretary John Phelan from his post and the latter went directly to the White House to ask US President Donald Trump if the decision was final.
The news of Phelan’s ouster took him and many people at the Pentagon completely by surprise on Wednesday evening, April 22, 2026.
The Pentagon’s chief spokesperson announced that Phelan would leave “effective immediately,” without providing an explanation.
They added that Undersecretary of the Navy Hung Cao would assume the role of acting secretary while the administration decides what to do next.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Pete Hegseth had been growing increasingly frustrated with Phelan for months for two main reasons.
- Hegseth believed Phelan was moving too slowly on shipbuilding reform, a priority on which the administration had invested considerable political capital.
- Hegseth was angered by what he saw as Phelan bypassed him to speak directly with President Trump.
The now former Secretary of the Navy’s mansion is located near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach and the two men built a close friendship over the years, which the Secretary of War apparently viewed as a threat to his authority.
At a meeting at the White House on Wednesday, as shipbuilding progress was discussed, Trump appeared unhappy and frustrated with the results and reportedly asked Secretary Hegseth to handle the situation.
Reports indicate that Hegseth immediately asked Phelan to resign and threatened to fire him if he did not comply. Phelan went straight to the White House to ask Trump about his firing and came back empty-handed.
The latest firing of a senior official comes after Hegseth removed the army chief of staff and two other army generals.
