Democratic senator rips Navy head's 'completely inappropriate' speech on ousted carrier captain

[riversedge]

Source: the hill




By Rebecca Kheel - 04/06/20 01:52 PM EDT


Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) blasted Thomas Modly on Monday after the acting Navy secretary called an ousted aircraft carrier captain “too naive or too stupid” to command the ship.

“Based on the transcript I’ve read, Secretary Modly’s comments were completely inappropriate and beneath the office of the secretary of the Navy,” Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement.

At issue is a speech Modly gave to sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt addressing his decision to relieve Capt. Brett Crozier after a letter Crozier wrote pleading for help with a coronavirus outbreak on the carrier leaked in the media.

In the speech, of which a transcript and audio leaked in the media Monday, Modly said that if Crozier didn’t think the letter would leak, he was “too naive or too stupid to be a commanding officer of a ship like this.”.........................

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/491375-democratic-senator-rips-navy-heads-completely-inappropriate-speech-on-ousted

---

In this alleged transcript (from a recording made by Sailors on board the Roosevelt), the Secretary of the Navy called the recently fired Captain Crozier “stupid” over the ship’s 1MC (speaker system) and others reported Modly cursed at the crew multiple times, using the “F word.”

Link to tweet

?s=20

[old guy]

1. No reason to pay any attention to this guy,

after all he is only acting. I suggest that most of the crew feel the same way.

[CrispyQ]

2. I don't see how this can be viewed as positive in ANY military family.

[mr_lebowski]

3. Pretty sure 'enthusiastic willingness to debase yourself, and the office for which you're hired'

is right there in the job postings for positions in the Orange Pustule's sadministration.

[ashredux]

4. I just listened to the recording. It was horrifying. It was the exact opposite of leadership.

[SunSeeker]

25. Me too. It's jaw dropping in it's whiny, partisan, self-indulgent unprofessionalism.

[Haggis for Breakfast]

38. Unprofessional, insulting and inappropriate.

In all my years in the NAVY, I NEVER heard an address laced with the vulgarity this man used.

If I'd been on the Teddy Rose, I'd have walked out of the room. Who in the HELL did he think his audience was ? He lost the entire crew of that ship at 1:57 in the address. In addition to the foul language, it sounded more like the screed of an 15 year old, pissed off that he got caught out after curfew.

Captain Crozier did not "panic" as the RW talking points keep saying. He waited patiently for leadership - got none - so he exercised the leadership so sorely lacking in the chain of command.

Moldy is in over his head and out of his depth. What a pretentious cocksucker.

[shotten99]

5. OPSEC definitely isn't being respected by anyone in this situation.

I've never seen something so unprofessional and sophomoric before. These comments should have been made behind closed doors with a public speech over the 1MC supporting the ship's crew in this difficult time. The SECNAV could have made these comments in the officers' ward room or the Chiefs' mess and it would have been "more" appropriate.

[gibraltar72]

6. He was brave enough to die for his country in war.

He just didn't want himself and his men to die for you and the Orange maggots ineptitude and lies. You sir are not fit to say his name.

[DENVERPOPS]

7. So,

add another federal gov't official to the hundreds that Trump and the Republican's already own........I wonder how long it will take the rank and file members of our military to wake up?..............

[S.E. TN Liberal]

8. Putin wants a weaker American military...

...and the orange turds decisions about how to run the military are giving Putin what he wants.

What is more damaging to the military than telling volunteer seamen and soldiers that their deaths mean nothing to the countries highest leadership.

I sure as hell would not join the military or re-enlist with any republican’t in charge.

[olddad65]

20. I agree 100%. Trump does not act in our country's best interest

EVER. He is owned and operated by the Russian mob/ government, and has been since the 90s.

[stillcool]

9. I listened to it...

scary sad.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213242213

[IronLionZion]

10. Trump needs to lose military and veteran voters

The United States should not be losing the lives of this many sailors during peacetime.

This is shameful and Modley is unworthy of his role as SECNAV

CAPT Crozier is a true Navy man who sacrificed his career to save his sailors and I hope President Biden will see his command reinstated honorably.

[olddad65]

21. Trump doesn't need anyone's vote....

He is a dictator, and will simply cancel the election. There will be no election in November.

[oldsoftie]

27. Once again, he CANNOT DO THAT. The law is very clear and not one that can be ignored.

Because its not debatable. Yes, we can all point out that he's violated OTHER laws. But those infractions were still debatable. There is no debate on changing an election date; it is what it is

[olddad65]

30. Yeah right. Just one more thing he can't do, that he will do.

[oldsoftie]

32. As I said, its not debatable. THIS law is not something he could ignore.

"The Tuesday next after the 1st Monday in November, in every even numbered year, is established as the day for the election, in each of the States and Territories of the United States, of Representatives and Delegates to the Congress commencing on the 3d day of January next thereafter."

Thats the law. Theres no way he can stop it from happening. He has no power to do it. And if he loses and refuses to accept THAT, he merely becomes a guest, with no powers, in the White House as soon as the new President is sworn in. And would then be removed.

[sarisataka]

33. HRC: "Let's be clear. Trump does not have the power to cancel / postpone the Nov election."

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213241725

Unless you believe Ms Clinton doesn't know what she is talking about.

[Warpy]

11. I rather think Mr Acting Secretary has lost the navy

Here is his complete speech, along with comments from the crew: https://soundcloud.com/paul-szoldra/acting-secnav-modley-criticizing-capt-crozier-to-sailors-onboard-uss-theodore-roosevelt

Yeah, I'd say every guy on that carrier has his number.

Gist of the speech "My department didn't to a fucking thing for you and Crozier complained to people who alerted the media and now we're all embarrassed. Now he's gone and you can just suck it up."

JFC. A CO who is respected by the men is pure gold, even I know that.

Embarrassed bureaucrats who fuck that up are the ones who need to go.

And it was such a long speech, too.

[pbmus]

12. We have an inept president with an inept administration and inept advisers....

[ancianita]

13. This explains why he's ACTING Secretary.

[Haggis for Breakfast]

37. No, Moldy is "acting" because trumpie has not sought Senate confirmation

on him. It's how he manages to get around the process of putting completely inept, incompetent ass sandwiches like Moldy in there in the first place.

That and trumpie does not considered him permanent.

[ancianita]

39. I know that acting is a legal term, and that's how it's meant on DU. How's your point different?

We all know why BD doesn't seek expertise. We know why he forces out confirmed cabinet heads.

He appoints "acting" cabinet heads and acting military heads who have no decision making authority.

Their lack of qualified leadership results in arrogant communications like this one.

So we agree.

[Haggis for Breakfast]

40. What I meant was -

trumpie has repeatedly appointed "actings" so that he can do an end run around the confirmation process, which would reveal in stunning, staggering detail just HOW unqualified the people he appoints are.

Then the ENTIRE country would know what a bunch of fried dick sandwiches we have running our nation.

[ancianita]

41. Same point. You make the point that how you say it makes your point different. Okay, fine.

[Haggis for Breakfast]

42. Can you just imagine

if all of these trump flunkys were forced to go through the confirmation process in Congress ?? It would be an exercise in a version of "trump: the Gong Show Revisited."

God, I can't wait for the adults to take over again.

[ancianita]

43. I hear you. The prospect that we could lose on this pandemic PR hill makes me want to ...

I can't say what I want to do to this man, but you probably know.

The adults remain sidelined for the remainder of this year. What scares me is what this bubble-headed mob would do to this country if they got yet another four years.

Look at what's going on in WI. That right there is a dark, evil design that could be repeated this fall.

God help us. (and I'm an atheist)

I swear, if the adults regain the presidency and the Senate, I'll drop my atheism.

[jayschool2013]

14. In addition to all his other bullshit

More of that journalists-are-the-enemy-of-the-people bullshit. Our agenda is to "divide the country"? Fuck him with Donald Junior's syphilitic dick.

[Paladin]

15. The USS Brett Crozier.

I'd like to see a new aircraft carrier with that name, once sane, decent, and intelligent leadership has been returned to the White House. It certainly would be more than justified and deserved.

[Gothmog]

16. VoteVets wants this idiot to be fired

Link to tweet

[ffr]

18. I second that. Thomas Modly must resign.

Deplorable!

[DinahMoeHum]

24. There's also a petition going around on behalf of Capt. Crozier.

https://www.change.org/p/usn-istandwithcaptcrozier-captcrozier-cvn71-reinstate-captain-crozier-as-commanding-officer?utm_source=grow_us&utm_medium=media





#newrostrong

[womanofthehills]

17. The aircraft carrier has 2 nuclear reactors

Captain Crozier went to the naval Nuclear Power School. Do we even know if his replacement has?

[PSPS]

19. It's "acting" Navy head (i.e., toady sycophant)

[DinahMoeHum]

22. Remember, Modly was the guy who replaced Richard Spencer. . .

. . .who resigned his office over the issue of Navy SEAL Ed Gallagher, who had been charged with war crimes.

According to his bio (Wikipedia), Modly was a Naval Academy graduate (1983), but he served only 7 years in the active service before going on to Georgetown U and Harvard Business School.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Modly

Make of that what you will.





#newrostrong

[oldsoftie]

28. I'm surprised he has any military experience at ALL

[SpankMe]

23. It's a Trumpian move

Whenever they screw up, they don't admit it and show contrition. Rather, they double down on it with force to trick people into believing that the error wasn't an error. They over compensate in the other direction. It's pure PsyOps.

Also, the statement that Crozier "...was too naive or too stupid to be a commanding officer of a ship like this..." is a lie and hyperbolic bullshit beyond compare. Do you have any idea of the vetting and evaluation that goes into promoting a Naval officer the commander of an aircraft carrier in the first place? The odds of a naive or stupid person getting a command like this is zero.

I have nothing but pure, undiluted hatred for Trump, the people who serve him and most of the people who voted for him.

[niyad]

26. So mouldy was attempting to justify this crap to the crew. In person. Hope he catches it.

[bronxiteforever]

29. Kick and recommend for Senator Kaine!

[chia]

31. If Modly didn't think his address to the crew would leak, he's too naive or too stupid to be SECNAV

[Walleye]

36. Excellent point.

[Walleye]

34. And of course he had to take a swipe at Joe Biden to keep trump's happy.

Sounds like they want to start a war with China.

[Marcuse]

35. The Acting SECNAV is only following orders.

I wouldn’t go to war with you people,” Trump told the assembled brass.
Addressing the room, the commander in chief barked, “You’re a bunch of dopes and babies.”
For a president known for verbiage he euphemistically called “locker room talk,” this was the gravest insult he could have delivered to these people, in this sacred space. The flag officers in the room were shocked. Some staff began looking down at their papers, rearranging folders, almost wishing themselves out of the room. A few considered walking out. They tried not to reveal their revulsion on their faces, but questions raced through their minds. “How does the commander in chief say that?” one thought. “What would our worst adversaries think if they knew he said this?”


This was a president who had been labeled a “draft dodger” for avoiding service in the Vietnam War under questionable circumstances. Trump was a young man born of privilege and in seemingly perfect health: six feet two inches with a muscular build and a flawless medical record. He played several sports, including football. Then, in 1968 at age 22, he obtained a diagnosis of bone spurs in his heels that exempted him from military service just as the United States was drafting men his age to fulfill massive troop deployments to Vietnam.
[link:https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/youre-a-bunch-of-dopes-and-babies-inside-trumps-stunning-tirade-against-generals/2020/01/16/d6dbb8a6-387e-11ea-bb7b-265f4554af6d_story.html|