U.S. defense chief backs Navy ouster amid report captain has coronavirus
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[April 06, 2020]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense
Secretary Mark Esper defended the Navy's controversial decision to
remove the commander of a coronavirus-stricken aircraft carrier, who was
reported on Sunday to have tested positive for COVID-19 as the number of
its sailors with the highly-contagious disease also grew.
Captain Brett Crozier started showing symptoms of the virus before he
was relieved of his command of the Theodore Roosevelt on Thursday and
has tested positive, the New York Times said, citing two Naval Academy
classmates who are close to Crozier.
The Navy did not immediately respond to a request for comment but does
not usually discuss individual cases due to privacy laws. The Pentagon
also did not immediately respond.
Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Thomas Modly removed Crozier after a scathing
letter written by the commander urging the Navy to do more to halt the
spread of the potentially lethal virus aboard the nuclear-powered
carrier was leaked to the media.
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The move sparked intense backlash as videos posted on social media
showed sailors aboard the vessel cheering Crozier as he departed and an
online petition called for his reinstatement. It has also become a
political lightning-rod as the Trump administration faces intense
criticism for its handling of the nation's coronavirus outbreak.
Esper, in his first public comments on the issue, on Sunday said he
backed the dismissal.
"Secretary Modly made a tough decision, a tough call. I have full faith
and confidence in him and the Navy leadership, and I support their
decision," Esper told ABC News' "This Week" program. "This is a chain of
command issue. It's an issue of trust and confidence in the captain of
the ship."
Modly last week told Reuters Crozier was being reassigned while the Navy
weighed possible disciplinary action, adding that the commander's letter
was shared too widely and was in the press before he could even read it.
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![](../images/040620pics/news_h15.jpg)
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper speaks during a joint news
conference with Britain's Secretary of State of Defence Ben Wallace
after their meeting at Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., March
5, 2020. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/File Photo
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On Saturday, President Donald Trump described the letter as "not
appropriate" and said Crozier had done a "terrible" thing.
Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, a Democrat who is seeking to
challenge the Republican Trump in the Nov. 3 presidential election,
called the firing of the captain "close to criminal."
"The idea that this man stood up and he said what had to be said,
got it out that ... his Navy personnel were in danger," Biden told
ABC News separately. "The guy, he should have a commendation rather
than be fired."
A group of Democratic U.S. senators have also called on the
Pentagon's independent Inspector General to investigate the
dismissal.
The Navy on Saturday said 155 Theodore Roosevelt sailors have now
tested positive for the coronavirus but none have been hospitalized,
with 44% of the ship's nearly 5,000 crew having been tested so far.
The carrier, whose home port is in San Diego, was at sea when the
outbreak began and has since docked at a U.S. naval base on Guam,
allowing sailors to evacuate and be quarantined on the American
island territory in the western Pacific.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Tim Ahmann; writing by Susan Heavey;
Editing by Nick Zieminski and Daniel Wallis)
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