President Trump welcomed Paul Dabbar and Hung Cao as officials in his second administration on Thursday, lauding them for their careers in public service.
Dabbar, a former nuclear submarine officer, has been dominated as deputy secretary of Commerce. Cao, a former GOP nominee to serve as a congressman and a senator from Virginia, was nominated to serve as under secretary of the Navy.
“I am pleased to nominate Paul Dabbar to be United States Deputy Secretary of Commerce. Paul will work closely with our Great Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, to bring back American Leadership in Global Commerce, Trade, and Technology,” Trump wrote in a Thursday Truth Social post.
“Paul served as my Under Secretary of Energy for Science, where he led the National Labs that started as the Manhattan Project, helping to drive semiconductors, AI, quantum, Energy Dominance, and our War-fighting capabilities,” he added of Dabbar, a graduate of the Naval Academy and Columbia University.
Trump praised Cao, a refugee from Vietnam, for his 25 years of service as a special operations officer.
“As a refugee to our Great Nation, Hung worked tirelessly to make proud the Country that gave his family a home. He went to our amazing United States Naval Academy, and later earned his Master’s Degree in Physics,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“With Hung’s experience both in combat, and in the Pentagon, he will get the job done.”
The appointments come as the Republican administration faces scrutiny over recent firings of top military officials including Charles “CQ” Brown who formerly served as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa M. Franchetti.
