John Phelan
Official portrait, 2025
79th United States Secretary of the Navy
Incumbent
Assumed office
March 25, 2025
President Donald Trump
Deputy Hung Cao
Preceded by Carlos Del Toro
Personal details
Born John Cartwright Phelan[1][2]
1964 (age 61–62)
Party Republican
Children 1
Education Southern Methodist University (BA)
Harvard University (MBA)
Signature Cursive signature of John C. Phelan

John Cartwright Phelan (born 1964) is an American businessman, political donor, and art collector currently serving as the 79th United States secretary of the Navy under President Donald Trump.

Education

Phelan earned a bachelor's degree in economics and political science from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, in 1986,[1] and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1990.[3] While he was an undergraduate, he studied abroad in London and took classes at the London School of Economics.[3]

Career

Business

He is the co-founding partner and chief investment officer of MSD Capital, a private investment company established in 1998 to manage the capital of Michael Dell.[3][4]

In 2022, Phelan resigned as CEO of MSD and founded Rugger Management LLC, a private investment company based in Palm Beach, Florida.[1][5]

Fundraising

The Phelans regularly host fundraising events at their homes in Palm Beach and Aspen. In 2022, they hosted a fundraiser for amfAR, a foundation for AIDS research, that raised $5.3 million.[6] In August 2024, they hosted a private fundraising dinner for Trump; the guests, who included Steve Wynn, Thomas Peterffy, Greg Abbott, Byron Donalds, Lauren Boebert and Cory Gardner,[7] donated between $25,000 and $500,000 apiece.[8]

Phelan was a donor for Donald Trump's presidential campaign, raising $12 million.[4][9]

Secretary of the Navy

On November 27, 2024, president-elect Trump announced Phelan as his nominee-to-be for United States Secretary of the Navy.[10] Many noted his lack of experience with the Navy, the military, national-security policy, and the defense industry. "Not all service secretaries come into the office with prior military experience, but he'd be the first in the Navy since 2006," the Associated Press reported.[11]

Phelan testified before the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services on February 27, 2025.[12] He was confirmed with bipartisan support by a vote of 62–30 on March 24, 2025,[13] and sworn in as the 79th Secretary of the Navy the next day.[14]

Personal life

In 2000, Phelan met his future wife Amy on a blind date. A former cheerleader for the Dallas Cowboys, Amy was working as a management services and systems engineering consultant in Dallas.[6][4][9] They have a daughter who is a New York City–based artist and socialite.[15]

John and Amy Phelan have a home in Aspen, Colorado, valued at $38 million, where they display part of their art collection.[9][7] They also have a home in Palm Beach with more of their art collection, including works by Andy Warhol and Willem de Kooning.[6] They also have an apartment on Park Avenue in New York City.[9]

Relationship with Jeffrey Epstein

Passenger manifests released as part of the Epstein files indicate that Phelan flew twice on the plane of Jeffrey Epstein several months before Epstein's first arrest on sex charges[16]. The first flight took place on February 27, 2006, from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to London Luton Airport.[17] The manifest for the second flight, from London to New York on March 3, 2006, indicates that Phelan flew with 12 other passengers, including Epstein, modeling agent and Epstein associate Jean-Luc Brunel, and six people whose names are redacted on the version of the manifest released in October 2025 by the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.[18][19][20]

References

  1. ^ a b c "John Phelan '86". Southern Methodist University. Archived from the original on March 19, 2025. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  2. ^ "SMU honors 2022 Distinguished Alumni, Emerging Leader" (Press release). Southern Methodist University. October 9, 2022. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c "Introducing John Phelan". London School of Economics. Archived from the original on January 21, 2025. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Schrader, Adam. "Trump names Florida businessman for secretary of the Navy. Who is John Phelan?". www.msn.com.
  5. ^ "Trump Picks Investment Manager John Phelan as Next Navy Secretary". The Maritime Executive. Archived from the original on April 30, 2025. Retrieved April 30, 2025.
  6. ^ a b c Martel, Judy (November 1, 2022). "Amy Phelan's Wonderful, Art-Filled World". Palm Beach Illustrated. Archived from the original on January 26, 2025. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Smith, David (October 4, 2024). "Donald Trump's foul-mouthed migrant rant captured in private pitch to donors". The Guardian. ISSN 1756-3224. OCLC 60623878. Archived from the original on March 6, 2025. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  8. ^ Smith, David (October 4, 2024). "Donald Trump's foul-mouthed migrant rant captured in private pitch to donors". The Guardian. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  9. ^ a b c d Schrader, Adam (December 2, 2024). "Trump's Pick to Lead the Navy Has No Military Experience—But He Does Have a Great Art Collection". Artnet News. Retrieved April 30, 2025.
  10. ^ Chan, Melissa (November 27, 2024). "Trump picks John Phelan, a businessman with no military experience, to be secretary of the Navy". NBC News. Archived from the original on March 19, 2025. Retrieved March 31, 2025.
  11. ^ Copp, Tara (November 27, 2024). "Trump turns to outsider to shake up Navy, but his lack of military experience raises concerns". AP News. Archived from the original on April 16, 2025. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
  12. ^ TO CONSIDER THE NOMINATION OF MR. JOHN C. PHELAN TO BE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY (PDF) (Report). COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES. February 27, 2025. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 25, 2025. Retrieved May 1, 2025.
  13. ^ "SASC Advances Nominations of Feinberg for Deputy Secretary of Defense, Phelan for Secretary of the Navy". COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES. March 11, 2025.
  14. ^ "Honorable John Phelan Sworn in as 79th Secretary of the Navy at National Archives". United States Navy. March 25, 2025. Archived from the original on March 28, 2025. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
  15. ^ Vales, Ariadne (April 12, 2019). "Over the Moon with Makenzie Moon Phelan". The Extravagant. Archived from the original on December 29, 2024. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  16. ^ "Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2026.
  17. ^ "John Phelan, Trump's Navy secretary, listed in Epstein flight logs". The Washington Post. February 7, 2026. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved February 10, 2026.
  18. ^ "JEGE, Inc. Passenger Manifest". United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. March 3, 2006. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
  19. ^ "Oversight Committee Releases Acosta Transcript". United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. February 6, 2026. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  20. ^ Britzky, Haley (February 6, 2026). "Exclusive: Navy secretary John Phelan listed as passenger on Jeffrey Epstein's private plane in 2006 | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
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