President Donald Trump on Thursday night nominated Navy veteran Hung Cao for Navy undersecretary, calling him the "embodiment of the American Dream."

Cao, who challenged Virginia Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine last year, served 25 years in the Navy before retiring as a captain. He served multiple deployments in his career, including to Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia, and collaborated with the Department of Homeland Security and FBI on behalf of the Navy. 

"I am pleased to announce that Hung Cao will be our next United States Under Secretary of the Navy," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. "Hung is the embodiment of the American Dream. As a refugee to our Great Nation, Hung worked tirelessly to make proud the Country that gave his family a home.

"With Hung’s experience both in combat, and in the Pentagon, he will get the job done," he added.

Cao thanked the president in a separate statement on X, promising to "get to work."

The former Naval officer will still need to be confirmed by the Senate, but if confirmed, he will work alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Navy Secretary nominee John Phelan.

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