Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly resigned on Tuesday after he apologized to Capt. Brett Crozier, the aircraft carrier commander Modly fired last week, reports the Washington Post, citing three people “familiar” with the matter.
Modly, who publicly insulted Crozier in a speech on Mondy in Guam, submitted his resignation in a letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper following a one-on-one meeting, reports Politico.
Neither Esper nor the White House pressured Modly to resign, Politico says.
CNN says in his final message to the Navy, Modly said: “The crew deserved a lot more empathy and a lot less lecturing—I lost sight of that at the time.”
Modly spoke to thousands of sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt anchored in Guam, calling Crozier “naïve” and “stupid” for writing an emailed letter pleading for help because his ship had been invaded by the coronavirus.
Crozier’s concern was for his crew: “We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die,” he wrote.
Modly’s speech to sailors who had cheered Crozier as he left the ship triggered an outpouring of support for the captain and widespread criticism of Modly, including demands by some members of Congress that he should resign.
Crozier is now among the more than 230 members of the Roosevelt’s crew who’ve tested positive for the virus.
At a news conference later on Monday, President Trump said Capt. Crozier shouldn’t have sent the letter to anyone outside of his chain of command, “but indicated he didn’t want the carrier skipper’s career to be ruined over one mistake,” says Yahoo News.
Trump indicated he would take a personal hand in the matter because Crozier has been “an outstanding person” and “I don’t want to destroy someone for having a bad day.”
Within hours of his speech, Modly scrambled to un-say what he’d said.
In a statement, he wrote:
“Let me be clear, I do not think Captain Brett Crozier is naïve nor stupid. I believe, precisely because he is not naive and stupid, that he sent his alarming email with the intention of getting it into the public domain in an effort to draw public attention to the situation on his ship.”
“I also want to apologize directly to Captain Crozier, his family, and the entire crew of the Theodore Roosevelt for any pain my remarks may have caused,” he added.
Was it naïve for Modly to think he could get away with aiming personal insults at a popular captain in front of his ship’s crew?
Was it stupid?
Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, seems to think so.
“Acting Secretary Modly’s decision to address the sailors on the Roosevelt and personally attack Captain Crozier shows a tone-deaf approach more focused on personal ego than one of the calm, steady leadership we so desperately need in this crisis,” Smith said in a statement Monday evening.
“I no longer have confidence in Acting Secretary Modly’s leadership of the Navy and believe he should be removed from his position,” Smith declared.
Ironically, after relieving Crozier of command of the Roosevelt last week, Modly said he was worried about being fired himself because his predecessor was ousted when the Navy “got crossways with the president” during an earlier dispute.
