Cao, Toti, Breckenridge Formally Nominated for Top Navy Jobs
The White House formally passed nominations to the Senate for the top three civilian leadership roles in the Department of the Navy, the Trump administration announced late Monday. Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao was nominated to be permanent Navy Secretary, and retired Navy Capt. Bill Toti, who is currently performing the duties of Undersecretary of the Navy, was nominated to fill the position permanently. Additionally, retired Vice Adm. Richard Breckenridge was tapped to be the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition – the Navy’s chief acquisition official. Cao, who was confirmed as the Navy Undersecretary last
(l to r) Hung Cao, Bill Toti, Richard Breckenridge The White House formally passed nominations to the Senate for the top three civilian leadership roles in the Department of the Navy, the Trump administration announced late Monday.
Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao was nominated to be permanent Navy Secretary, and retired Navy Capt. Bill Toti, who is currently performing the duties of Undersecretary of the Navy, was nominated to fill the position permanently. Additionally, retired Vice Adm. Richard Breckenridge was tapped to be the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition – the Navy’s chief acquisition official.
Cao, who was confirmed as the Navy Undersecretary last year, has served as the acting SECNAV since April when then SECNAV John Phlean was removed from the position. President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Cao on Sept. 1.
In addition to the standard confirmation through the Senate, Cao will require a waiver to serve as the Navy Secretary from both the House and the Senate, USNI News reported last week. Following the waiver granted to former Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, nominees for service secretaries must wait seven years from retirement from active service to be qualified to serve. Cao is a 1996 U.S. Naval Academy graduate and served as an explosive ordnance disposal and diving officer. He retired from the Navy as a captain in October 2021, according to his Department of the Navy biography. Under current law, Cao wouldn’t be eligible without a waiver until 2028. The law does not apply to nominees who served in the reserve or the National Guard.
Toti, a retired submariner, has been performing the duties of the undersecretary since May, USNI News reported. Prior to the Navy job, Toti served as an advisor to Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg.
He said Tuesday in a post on X, “So proud to be working alongside @SECNAV these last few months while performing the duties of Under Secretary of the Navy. Then yesterday, the President nominated me to be the next Under Secretary of the Navy. If I am eventually confirmed, this would be [the] honor of my life.”
Breckenridge, also a retired submariner whose last job in the service was deputy commander of Fleet Forces, has been serving as the top civilian deputy for the RDA and as a shipbuilding adviser since June.
“[H]e will help guide the Navy’s shipbuilding efforts, playing a critical role in revitalizing the nation’s industrial base, streamlining acquisition processes and building the Golden Fleet,” reads the June 15 statement on his appointment from Cao. Former SECNAV chief of staff William Mahan is currently performing the duties of RDA.
The nominations come as the Department of the Navy has been in the throes of major reorganizations around its shipbuilding and acquisition programs with increased involvement of both the larger Pentagon and the White House.
Over the last year, the Navy’s shipbuilding workforce has been split with all submarine repair and construction responsibilities assigned to Vice Adm. Rob Gaucher, first submarine direct reporting portfolio manager (DRPM) who answers directly to Feinberg.
The nominations also follow a shipbuilding directive from President Donald Trump that included a study to replace hydraulic catapults aboard the Ford-class carriers, explore foreign ship designs for frigates and auxiliaries, building a fifth public shipyard and reforming Naval Sea Systems Command.
In turn, Cao has directed the department to execute on the new directives from the White House in a process that was overseen by Toti.
