The audio of SECNAV's speech on the Roosevelt. This is terrifying.

[Recursion]

Umm... this is terrifying

https://soundcloud.com/paul-szoldra/acting-secnav-modley-criticizing-capt-crozier-to-sailors-onboard-uss-theodore-roosevelt

Fast forward to 1:55 or so.

As a former Marine:

That. Is. Fucking. Terrifying.

That's a crew about two shoestrings from mutinying.

This is a Nimitz class carrier: the workhorses of our fleet. America's security is absolutely and 100% dependent on these ships and the men and women that crew them.

This administration has just lost a Nimitz without a fucking shot being fired. This ship is not deployable, and the crew will have to be parceled out to other ships. This is a fucking nightmare.

[Sanity Claws]

1. How did he think that this would improve things?

Poor judgment.

[SunSeeker]

5. Seriously. I listened to the whole thing. It was whiny, political and self-indulgent.

He embarrassed the Navy and our country with that speech. He needs to resign.

[Recursion]

6. The shouts from the deck are what terrify me

"WHAT THE FUCK"

"YOU SHOULD HAVE HELPED HIM"

etc.

If the crew of a Navy ship is doing that to SECNAV, we have huge problems.

[Laelth]

8. Agreed. n/t

-Laelth

[SunSeeker]

11. Honestly, that heartened me. They see him for the piece of shit he is.

Yes, normally it is completely unacceptable for sailors to heckle a Secretary of the Navy. But he is no normal Secretary. He is Acting. And unconfirmed. And a political hack who broadcasts a political rant on the PA of a fucking aircraft carrier while docked in port.
He knew this would immediately go to the media. They were right to show their displeasure at being forced to be part of his unprofessional attempt to resuscitate his reputation.

[Recursion]

16. I feel you, but that's a ship that can't deploy

We don't have the option of wondering if a carrier group's crew will obey orders.

[SunSeeker]

19. I have no doubt those sailors would obey valid orders.

But it is clear those sailors will not be "good Germans." And that makes me happy.

[William769]

33. Me too.

[Caliman73]

34. Agreed. However the attribution is not to the sailors, it is to the leadership.

At the end it is the same, the ship cannot be deployed and unfortunately the crew will have to be sent out to other ships. The fortunate thing is that other ships have good leaders who can regain the trust of the sailors. The problem is that we have the acting Secretary of the Navy AND a commander in chief who are disgusting pieces of shit who don't give a rats ass about sailors, airmen, soldiers, or marines and would gladly allow them to die for their own reputations.

The crew will follow orders that are given by a legit leader not some suck up piece of crap.

[kacekwl]

69. So he did the same thing he is

decrying the fired commander did.

[SunSeeker]

84. Yup. Republicans are always projecting. nt

[SuprstitionAintthWay]

90. Going public, probably purposefully, yes. But to vastly different purposes.

Last edited Tue Apr 7, 2020, 02:09 PM - Edit history (1)

Capt. Crozier's selfless purpose:
To try to save his crew from the covid-19 outbreak spreading fast on his cramped ship of 4,500.

Something, btw, Teddy Roosevelt himself did, the same way but much more insubordinately, in 1898 when his troops in Cuba were needlessly dying of yellow fever and malaria and the Secretary of War turned a deaf ear to his plea for their evacuation back home.

[ EDIT:
The deets on the fascinating historical 1898 -> 2020 parallels:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213236642

The saying in this case is very true. History doesn't repeat, but it sure does rhyme. ]


Acting SecNav Modly's craven, self-interested purposes:

To try to get some of the nation's heat off himself;

To try to maybe get a tiny bit of his ruined reputation back;

To excoriate the free press and to try to intimidate anybody else on the USS TR who might believe in the First Amendment;

To make a big show for Donald Trump, to score some more of the kind of brown-nose points he knows work so well with the petty, stupid Manchild-in-Chief and hopefully extend his own toadying career.

[uponit7771]

14. Like whoa, yep ... about a shoe string away from a ship that can't sail

[Recursion]

15. And that takes the whole carrier group with it (nt)

[SunSeeker]

22. It's not the sailors that imperil the carrier group. It's Modly.

With him as Acting Secretary, the Navy is not fit to fight.

[BComplex]

70. Not fit to fight is what trump is aiming for. All roads lead to Putin.

Trump has dismantled our government, and criminalized what was left. He has shared top secrets with the russians in private meetings with nobody else on our side in the room. Trump is a traitor to the United States in every sense of the word.

AND THE REPUBLICAN LED SENATE FAILED TO REMOVE HIM FROM OFFICE when they had the chance.

This is on ALL republicans, including that SECNAV asshole.

[iemitsu]

106. A ship cannot deploy with a sick crew.

We are in a very vulnerable position here.

[scarletwoman]

27. "Acting" SECNAV - not actually officially confirmed.

And acting very badly.

[trueblue2007]

39. THAT GUY IS AN A-HOLE

[niyad]

40. Not that it is terribly important, but is he acting secnav. Was he ever confirmed.

[TxVietVet]

93. When the sailors are still riled up,

That means something is still seriously wrong. The Navy still has a problem. I’m wondering if they put the captain off because no one wanted approach tRump with this problem. Of course, tRump didn’t deal with it. The chain of command was probably trying to cover its ass. (Just me thought)

When the facts come out, it may be a story we don’t want to hear.

When the Mai Lai massacre was reported, command didn’t want to look bad and had some silly reasons to blame it on disgruntled troops. UNTIL Seymour Hersh put out the facts. The Army blamed the lowest ranking officer to be the scapegoat.

If Command doesn’t look out for the troops, the troops are the blame. This. Virus is a death sentence for some of the TR’s sailors.

[Poiuyt]

17. That's what endears him to trump

[crickets]

20. It sounded a lot like a retcon to me.

Crozier did not go to the media. Modly's rewriting the story to make Crozier a scapegoat, and his crew isn't having it.

[keithhs28]

75. Modly would do well...

Last edited Mon Apr 6, 2020, 07:39 PM - Edit history (1)

...to re-learn the history of the Potemkin battleship.

[mercuryblues]

88. What history is that

and how does it pertain to what Crozier should learn?

[mercuryblues]

101. Ahhh

thanks for clarifying. Welcome aboard.

[Rorey]

2. I hope F*cking Modley gets the worst possible case

What a monster!

[superpatriotman]

3. Too naive or stupid to run an Aircraft Carrier?

I don't think so.

[SunSeeker]

4. He rants how awful it is to leak to the media, but then does so himself with this speech. WTF?

[stillcool]

7. wow...I knew the military was right-wing..

but I had no idea they were that overt about it. Makes the bullshit level in this country seem so monumental.

[denbot]

54. It wasn't from the military.

That speech was delivered by the “acting Secretary of the Navy. He’s an acting because Trump knows better than putting he before the senate for confirmation.

[stillcool]

67. thank you.

not surprising at all. Any of it.

[dchill]

74. Selective leaking. Disinformation.

Trump style.

[Thomas Hurt]

9. This could get ugly for the acting f**knuts...if he embarasses Dear Leader.

[uponit7771]

10. Is this Crozier's former ship? tia

[Recursion]

12. Yes. Acting SECNAV giving a speech to the crew (nt)

[Starfury]

13. If he wanted to destroy crew morale...

Mission Accomplished!

[mercuryblues]

18. Holy fuck

this is a guy high on trump's farts.

He should be shit canned for that speech alone.

[SunSeeker]

21. Right? Trump could have written that speech....and maybe did. nt

[SuprstitionAintthWay]

94. Maybe the "The Liberal Lying Fake News Media Is Your Enemy!" parts

were penned in in Sharpie.

[mercuryblues]

100. More like trump

shit it out his ass, Modly swallowed it and then regurgitated it into words. The best words. He has all the best words.

[EarlG]

23. Disturbing on many levels

Part of that broadcast is SecNav telling the crew that American media is the enemy.

"... the media has an agenda, and the agenda that they have depends on which side of the political aisle that they sit, and I'm sorry that that's the way the country is now, but it's the truth. And so they use it to divide us. They use it to embarrass the Navy. They use it to embarrass you."

WTF.

[Dem2theMax]

24. Goebbels.

[renate]

61. my first thought exactly

I'm so glad these sailors aren't falling for his propaganda.

[SunSeeker]

25. Right? He is trashing the 1st Amendment even though he is sworn to protect the Constitution.

He must resign.

[crickets]

28. I know! That part jumped out at me too. nt

[SuprstitionAintthWay]

95. China is EVIL for muzzling ITS whistleblowers. Trump & I are big HEROES for crushing OURS.

[procon]

26. Someone clearly shouted "Fuck You!" There were lots

of angry voices shouting back at this jerk when he called their captain "stupid".

In a speech loaded with swear words, he seems determined to portray himself as a hapless victim, claiming the crew hated him. He was only interested in trying to justify his decision to fire the captain, but in doing so he criticized the sailors and continued to insult their captain.

Needless to say his words were not well taken.

[underpants]

31. I heard WTF

[ashredux]

29. God help us....that was the opposite of leadership.....what an idiot

[IronLionZion]

30. Modley is a real piece of shit

and wholly undeserving of the title Secretary of the Navy.

There was a time when SECNAV didn't suck. This shameful behavior would have never happened with Ray Mabus or Sean Stackley, probably not even Richard Spencer who resigned over that asshole who murdered a captured prisoner.

[Paladin]

32. Just another clueless, talent-free trump-sucker.

How despicable to inflict a piece of shit like this guy on a struggling ship's crew, a crew that just lost a competent, caring captain. Unforgivable.

[Ferrets are Cool]

35. The horrible thing is that he may get promoted for this shit. nt

[CloudWatcher]

36. Putin

I'm sure Putin is so proud of his puppet!! Trump has done so more damage than any of our enemies could possibly have wished for!

[doc03]

37. Every competent leader in our government seems

to have someone (acting) in their place. This son of a bitch has put a Trump clone in charge of every department.

[malaise]

38. WTF is right

This entire Kakistocracy has to go

[Takket]

41. I can't believe he got up there and said those things

I would have expected to be shot on sight if I said such things. He thinks some stuffed shirt showing up and trashing the captain that was protecting them is going to make them happy???

[doc03]

42. If we win this election the first order of business has

to be to purge every single person Trump has appointed.

[Takket]

46. The next attorney general is going to have their hands full as well

[uponit7771]

57. AMEN AND AMEN!!! and then some that supported these asshole .. every one of them

[w0nderer]

43. k & r n/t

[Chainfire]

44. The face of Fascism

Ignore the issue, sacrifice the innocent and punish the heroes. If ever a speech was designed to crush the morale of a ship, this was it.
I guarantee you one thing, that man does not want to go to sea with that ship.

The asshole needs to be keel hauled.

[niyad]

45. Did mouldy actually go on the TR? Is he even more stupid and clueless than I thought.

Calling an obviously loved captain "stupid and naive"


Are there sharks in that area?

[calimary]

47. If a former Marine says this is terrifying, I certainly take that seriously.

Thank you for your service, Recursion. You're STILL serving.

[SheltieLover]

76. Hell yrs!

TY, Recursion!

[Snake Plissken]

48. Based on this clown's own standards, he himself needs to be fired

He rants for a 15 minutes about how he fired Captain Brett Crozier for leaking the concerns he had about the safety of his crew to the press ... and then he himself leaks his rant to the press.

It's like this whole ѕhitshow of an administration is living on a diet of lead paint chips

[denbot]

49. Old Destroyer man here, and I can't agree more.

I stand with Captain Crozier.

[underpants]

51. Ok. Let me ask a question. Could this be "getting them whipped back in to shape"

Stepping down on them before they get to unruly? He IS Marine and that was Marines main job - keeping the crew in order.

Army guy asking.

[denbot]

60. Marines are onboard capital navy ships for security of the ships, and weapon systems.

On larger ships and naval bases marines are used for this purpose, on smaller ships like destroyers we provide our security.

The saying “The Navy takes care of their own” cuts many ways. So no, they are not there to keep the crew in line.

[underpants]

72. I'm sorry, I meant traditionally

In the old days.

[denbot]

79. I don't think so, but my family naval tradition only goes back to WWII

On ships large enough to have a brig, marines man that. I guess that’s why some would think along your lines. Back in the days of tall ships marines were used mostly to secure a port, and as snipers in the rigging during boarding operations.

As far as I know there has never been a true mutiny onboard a U.S. Naval vessel, but the day ain’t over yet..

[bullwinkle428]

50. Bet my 401k (FWIW) that Chump dictated that speech, the same way he

dictated that "letter" from his personal physician!

[ffr]

65. Then the comments to the gaslighting speech should translate directly to tRump

fuckwit
He makes me sick.
Douchebag
Absolutely unprofessional!!!
mutiny
Lying ass ratfaced bitch
joe Biden was right. Moldy is another Trump sycophant toady
Bless you commander Crozier. job well done.
Send EVERYTHING to the media if lives can be saved. That’s why Zrozier wrote the letter - he CARED ABOUT HIS SAILORS!!
Here had an agenda! What an asshole! Y'all better not fall for this! Y'all should have busted his ass! Lying sack of shit!

This guy is SCUM!!!! He's too busy kissning #45 Ass and thinking about himself. The CPT wouldn't have had to go to the media, if the people he cried out to would have helped him. But they (Dumpsters) would rather see people die, that to get them off of that ship. Dude...you are a Freaking JOKE!!! And where is YOUR leadership??? Real leaders don't speak this way, nor do they play the blame game. You SUCK!!!

[tiptonic]

52. What branch

What branch was this dumb ass in, if any? The duty of any commander, is to take care of your people. Your ship is not much good, if it is full of dead people, just floating around, like a piece of drift wood.

[denbot]

83. He was in the navy for 7 years.

My guess is he was being passed over for promotion. That happens more than twice for the next rank, or consistently through ranks, officers are forced to muster out.

[Submariner]

53. That would be an instant Captain's Mast, loss of rank, loss of pay, restricted to ship

we hated the VN war and may have disliked the CO and XO of the boats, but could never display such insubordination to officers without getting severely disciplined.

But I stand with them for what Trump did to this Captain's career, and I hope The Donald dies from the virus real soon.

[Takket]

55. The real funny part...

Is going to be when drumpf fires him for reading word for word the speech drumpf wrote for him that “they are going to love because no president has ever been as loved as much as me”

[Warpy]

56. I posted that in another thread

it's worth listening to just for the crew comments. His long long speech did not go over well.

Bottom line, bureaucrats who haven't even been run by the Senate are running things and their skin is just as thin as their boss's skin is and they got all embarrassed over being called out for not doing jack shit for the sailors on that ship.

No dictator in history has managed to stay in power without the backing of the military. I'd say the orange slime mold has just lost one branch of it.

[riversedge]

58. I read the transcriptthat was bad enough. I feel so bad for those sailors.

[Azathoth]

59. Not sure I've ever heard anything like this

Going out and doing a political harangue trashing him to his former subbordinates.

This is the kind of shit communist party officers in the USSR used to do when they disappeared a commander to the gulag.

[LudwigPastorius]

62. Modly is a corporate ass-licker.

Excuse me...

Acting corporate ass-licker.

[riversedge]

63. Photo of Acting Sec of the Navy..........

Link to tweet

?s=20

Link to tweet

?s=20

[JHB]

98. Trump, Rachel. Trump is how he survives this day

A loyal Commissar has nothing to fear from reciting Correct Policy he received from the Premier of the Party Central Committee.

At least not until the Premier decides it's to his advantage to throw the loyal Commissar overboard. But what are the odds of that happening with Premier Donald?

[meadowlander]

64. Who is posting the comments on the bottom? Is that the crew?

Or people listening afterwards?

[Ligyron]

78. Afterward I think.

Many are whole sentences, way too long to be yelled at Acting Ass Kiss Mouldy

[RVN VET71]

66. Crew is reacting to a horse's ass

because that's what this horse's ass is. Jesus freaking Christ! Did Modley set this ugly mistaken presentation up on his own? He's getting booed and hissed by the crew. Holy crap, he even says that crew members who are currently on shore told him that Crozier's letter demoralized them. How pathetic is this?

And he acknowledges that the crew love Crozier but says, as if it means anyfuckingthing: "It's good that you love the guy, but you're not required to love the guy." Really? Isn't that the point of love? Isn't love a sign that Crozier was leading and leading extremely well?

What a son of a bitching know nothing fascist son of a trump-ass-kissing bitch.

My Dad was a Navy man, WWII. If he were alive today and listening to this craven bullshit, he'd be punching holes in walls and breaking furniture. It's bad enough he made a politically driven decision, but to berate and talk down to the crew, to suggest that their love for the commander was misplaced and that their sense of honor and duty is wrong, that they have lost sight of their mission, of their patriotism.

[slumcamper]

68. Putin...this administration HAS to be working for Vladimir.

Dismantling government institutions, ignoring and undermining rule of law, fomenting profound public discord, incompetence and mismanagement to the extreme...and now inciting mutiny.

Does this all seem merely coincidental?

[SheltieLover]

77. As Speaker zpelosi said: " All roads lead to Russia!"

🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬

[slumcamper]

89. Indeed! She's speaking code to us. She knows more than we can possibly imagine.

[SheltieLover]

91. Indeed!

[bronxiteforever]

71. Is this really surprising given this administration?

Once you start tearing down institutions, you can’t really whine that the institution doesn’t have your back.

Orange Menace blew up things, like he said he would. I am amazed that people think everything would be normal in the military. What exactly have they seen in the last 3.5 years to give them that comfort?

Our First President had to deal with problematic morale issues.IIRC, he handled the situation quite different from this maladministration. I remember historian Barbara Tuchman describe how Washington addressed troops during a potential mutiny by taking out his glasses.

"Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for, I have grown not only gray, but almost blind in the service of my country."

He did this trying to calm anxious Continental Army officers frustrated with Congress in March 1783

[bringthePaine]

73. just like the whole D'ump saga, removed the wrong guy - its all on SECNAV,

as amateur hour continues unabated

[Orrex]

80. Trump should fire that asshole immediately & reinstate Captain Crozier

Of course, since Trump is an idiot racist fuckhead worshiped by a cult of idiot racist fuckheads, he will no doubt praise the asshole's loyalty and "beautiful service" or whatever he'll call it.

And a disgusting number of veterans and service personnel still support president fuckhead.

[Marthe48]

81. How can I save this as a audio file on my laptop?

I figure it'll disappear and I'd like to keep a copy.

Thank you.

[SoCal Roomba]

82. This is inexcusable from a SECNAV, acting or not.

The Navy preaches praise in public, reprimand in private.

The SECNAV has tossed decorum and tradition overboard in order to please his boss. I’m sure Trump was miffed that the CO was cheered when departing.

Capt. Crozier knew good and well that he would probably lose his command because of what he did, yet he still did it, that should tell us all something.

Bringing up China as a scapegoat, calling a veteran senior leader stupid, all of this is just subterfuge to steer the narrative that this admin HASN'T completely bungled it’s response to this pandemic on all levels. It’s just more pandering bull shit chum for the base.

The only thing that SECNAV, and by proxy the Navy, gained from this exercise in unprofessionalism, is a fleet full of Sailors that now know for a fact that the chain of command doesn’t care for their well being. As suspected, they know they are disposable pieces, and the only person in their chain of command that didn’t feel that way was shit canned for caring.

Every man and woman on that ship signed up to honor the Constitution and the American people, and will do it in a moments notice. However, they did not sign up to be tossed aside as fodder in a bull shit political game being played to keep a criminal in office.

[coti]

85. He talks about how transparent they are after saying going to the media was a betrayal.

He goes after China for not being "forthcoming" about the virus, after he fired the Roosevelt's captain for giving information to the public.

Everything was "politics" and "agendas" with this guy- because that's what's important to him and the rest of Trump's collaborators. They don't care about anything but Trump and what's good for him politically. People's lives mean nothing.

These people are absolute trash.

[marble falls]

86. Doesn't sound like he put any oil on the water with the crew ...

nothing but rationalizations and excuse after excuse after yet more rationalization.

[packman]

87. Why does BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN

keep nagging me as I read about this asswipe and the crew's reaction?

[keithbvadu2]

92. He said China was not forthcoming while he ignores the fact that CinC Trump let CV grow freely while

He said China was not forthcoming while he ignores the fact that CinC Trump let CV grow freely while pretending that all was well and under control.

[coti]

96. He literally fired someone for being forthcoming and giving info to the public. Then has the nerve

to attack China for not being "forthcoming."

[KewlKat]

97. Kicking to find this later

[BrightKnight]

99. That was a very partisan political speech.

It is not how I would have tried to diffuse the situation.

[AntiFascist]

102. Putin must be happy n/t

[LaMouffette]

103. "The only reason we're dealing with this right now is because

a big authoritarian regime called China was not forthcoming about what was happening with this virus. And they put the world at risk to protect themselves and to protect their reputations." —Acting Secretary of the Navy Modley


Oh, no, no, no, excuse me, but the only reason we're dealing with this right now is because "a big authoritarian regime called the TRUMP ADMINISTRATION was not forthcoming about what was happening with this virus. And they put the world at risk to protect themselves and to protect their reputations."

This is one of the most blatant and egregious displays of projection from the Trump regime to date.

Trump has murdered 11,000 Americans thus far. As far as I'm concerned, he is the worst terrorist, foreign or domestic, that this country has ever seen. And the GOP is doing NOTHING to stop him. Why are they not demanding his resignation or Article 25-ing him???? I know why: they are terrified of Trump and terrified of Putin.

[MerryBlooms]

104. R&K Carbon copy punk of the head punk, trump.

[Hortensis]

105. Overstated a bit? The executive officer is in command,

and the rest of the command structure.

But, boy. If the acting SecNav flying out to bypass the command structure to blame Crozier and the media to thousands of sailors directly strikes us as bizarre, how about them? Bet they were relieved to have this political lacky gone and get back to work.

Looked it up, btw: Rear Admiral-select Carlos Sardiello -- FORMER commanding officer of the Theodore Roosevelt -- real navy like all the rest on that ship -- is the new commanding officer, but of course he wasn't there 4 days ago when this very unfortunate visit took place. May be to the good.

Best wishes to Captain Crozier as he fights off COVID-19 and the 237 sailors identified as positive.

[Botany]

107. Good God in Butter did some Nazi DNA escape the Third Reich and get planted into Modly?

"You were wrong to cheer Capt. Crozier off the ship."

The Capt. laid his ass on the line to help save his crew on multiple times.

[MrScorpio]

108. This psycho is treating the US Navy like a cult...

These Trumpist fuckers need to go.

[Ilsa]

109. Except for the really loud "WHAT THE F%CK!" I couldn't hear

how the crew was reacting. I couldn't hear what they were yelling at him.

I agree with the OP's assessment: Donald Fucking Trump has managed to take out an entire aircraft carrier because he delayed implementing a pandemic plan. He's put our nation at risk of not being able to respond to an attack coming from Pacific nations.

[Hortensis]

110. Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly has resigned as a direct result

of this despicable misbehavior. There's reportedly a huge rift between top Navy personnel and Trump's political appointees, chosen for deficiencies in all respects.

But for now, this jerk's now out and the Navy wins.

CNN: Undersecretary of the Army James McPherson has been tapped to succeed Modly, Esper wrote. McPherson is a retired rear admiral and was the former judge advocate general of the Navy.

And again, the new commander of the Theodore Roosevelt is a prior commander of that carrier.