Senate confirms John Phelan as Navy Secretary in bipartisan vote

The Senate on Monday night confirmed Florida businessman John Phelan as Navy Secretary in a bipartisan 62-30 vote.

President Donald Trump nominated Phelan, who has no military background, for the position last year, stating that he "has excelled in every endeavor," that he has taken on, and that he was a "true Champion of American Enterprise and Ingenuity."

Opponents have largely appeared skeptical over Phelan's lack of a military background, but Phelan argued in his confirmation hearing that he was best suited for the job because his business background would help fix the Navy's workforce management issues, cost issues, failed audits and delays in shipbuilding, The Hill reported.

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

The Senate on Monday also confirmed Christopher Landau's nomination for Deputy Secretary of State in a 60-31 vote. He will work under Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.