Hero’s send-off for captain of carrier
It was a send-off for the ages, with hundreds of sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt cheering Capt. Brett Crozier, the commander who sacrificed his naval career by writing a letter to his superiors demanding more help as the coronavirus spread through the aircraft carrier.
The rousing show of support provided the latest gripping scene to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic: the rank and file shouting their admiration for a boss they viewed as putting their safety ahead of his career.
The memes were quick to sprout on social media. On Reddit, one depicted Crozier forced to choose between rescuing his career or his sailors from a burning building; he chooses his sailors. On Twitter, a slew of videos showed Crozier’s walk down the gangway in Guam, most of them depicting him as a hero struck down by his superiors for trying to save the lives of his crew. “Wrongfully relieved of command but did right by sailors,” wrote Twitter user Dylan Castillo, alongside a video of Crozier leaving his ship.
But in removing Crozier from command, senior Navy officials said they were protecting the historic practice that complaints and requests have to go up a formal chain of command. They argued that by sending his concerns to 20 or 30 people in a message that eventually leaked to news organizations, Crozier showed he was no longer fit to lead the fast-moving effort to treat the crew and clean the ship.
His removal from prestigious command of an aircraft carrier with almost 5,000 crew members has taken on added significance, as his punishment is viewed by some in the military as indicative of the government’s handling of the entire pandemic, with public officials presenting upbeat pictures of the government’s response, while contrary voices are silenced.
The cheering by the sailors is the most public repudiation of military practices to battle the virus since the pandemic began. At the Pentagon, officials expressed concern about the public image of a Defense Department not doing enough to stay ahead of the curve on the virus.
Notably, the defense of the firing offered by senior Pentagon officials has centered on Crozier not following the chain of command in writing his letter, which found its way to newspapers. In a circuitous explanation, Thomas Modly, the acting Navy secretary, said Crozier’s immediate superior did not know the captain was going to write the letter, offering that act as an error in leadership and one of the reasons the Navy had lost confidence in the Roosevelt captain.
But a Navy official familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly about it said the captain repeatedly asked his superiors for speedy action to evacuate the ship. His letter, the official said, came because the Navy was still minimizing the risk.
Modly insisted that his firing the captain for writing a letter asking for more help does not mean that subordinate officers are not allowed to raise criticisms and ask for assistance.
“To our commanding officers,” Modly told reporters Thursday, “it would be a mistake to view this decision as somehow not supportive of your duty to report problems, request help, protect your crews, challenge assumptions as you see fit.”
But the removal of Crozier likely will have a chilling effect on the willingness of commanders to bring bad news to their superiors.
“There’s no question they had the authority to remove him,” Kathleen Hicks, a former top Pentagon official in the Obama administration, said in an email. “The issue is one of poor judgment in choosing to do so. They are fueling mistrust in leader transparency, among service members, families and surrounding/hosting communities.”
Hicks, now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, added that the episode “lays bare the broader incompatibility in the Defense Department’s dualtrack approach of attempting to tightly control and centralize its strategic communications at the same time it has adopted a highly decentralized approach to combating the coronavirus.”
Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., is a former enlisted Marine who saw heavy combat in Iraq. In an interview Friday, he described the Navy’s actions in firing Crozier as “dangerous.”
“For the men and women on the Roosevelt and across the Navy, the message is this,” Gallego said. “If the commander is looking out for you and doesn’t go about it the right way, he’s going to get punished. It’s dangerous; it’s going to impact morale and retention rates.”
Gallego pointed to the firings of the commanders of the John McCain and the Fitzgerald, two destroyers that were involved in fatal accidents in 2017 that killed 17 sailors. Those firings came after months of investigations, while Crozier was fired within three days of his letter becoming public.
Yet the Trump administration has in several high-profile war crimes cases chosen not to punish those accused. President Donald Trump, for instance, granted clemency to Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher, a Navy SEAL who was acquitted of murder last year but convicted of a lesser war crime.
For the military, a core issue is that, as the coronavirus spreads, it becomes increasingly difficult to carry on with training and missions. The problem is only amplified in the Navy.
Each ship — with confined berthing areas, mess halls and shared bathrooms — is a cramped cell where social distancing is nearly impossible. Once the virus gets on a ship, it is bound to spread.