The Styrous® Viewfinder: On TV 24: Capt. Brett E. Crozier vs. Thomas Modly & US Navy

April 7, 2020

On TV 24: Capt. Brett E. Crozier vs. Thomas Modly & US Navy

After drifting for days with the Corona virus beginning to spread through his crew of 4,800 men and women aboard the aircraft carrier, USS Theodore Roosevelt, neither the government nor the US Navy allowed removal of the crew from the ship. On March 30, Capt. Brett E. Crozier wrote a letter with an emotional plea for help, which leaked the next day.

The four-page letter used the example of recent cruise-ship infection disasters to argue that closed shipboard environments were the worst possible location for people with the disease. It laid out the case for immediate action to protect the Roosevelt’s crew.

Two days after that, United States Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly fired him. The incident has been a major story in the news (link below).

As the Captain was walking down the gangway leaving his ship, the crew of the carrier cheered him for his bravery in attempting to save his crew and risking his career (link below).

After Crozier had left the ship, Modly addressed the crew over the public address system. In the address he called the Captain "naive and stupid". He did not realize it was being recorded; in the recording the reaction of the crew can be heard. It has become a national scandal.

David Muir & Capt. Brett E. Crozier

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The public reaction to the incident has been astounding; Modly has been forced to apologize for the statements and he has resigned.

reaction from a crew member

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reaction from a crew member

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The Washington Post has likened it to "Life imitating art" in its reference to many naval films:

"Recall classic tales about the moral dilemmas of men and women in uniform: “Mutiny on the Bounty,” “The Caine Mutiny,” “An Officer and a Gentleman” and “A Few Good Men.” The tale of the Roosevelt, crippled by covid-19, with a captain beloved by his sailors but mistrusted by the brass back at the Pentagon, has elements of all of them."

Modly explained his growing concern that Crozier had “lost situational awareness” and that the captain wasn’t communicating clearly with the chain of command or the acting Navy secretary himself. He also described the shadow overhanging the Navy after Trump’s controversial intervention last fall in the case of United States Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher.

Modly explained that his predecessor, Navy Secretary Richard Spencer, “lost his job because the Navy Department got crossways with the president” in the Gallagher case. “I didn’t want that to happen again.” The acting secretary reiterated the point later in the conversation: “I put myself in the president’s shoes. I considered how the president felt like he needed to get involved in Navy decisions [in the Gallagher case and the Spencer firing]. I didn’t want that to happen again.”

Thomas Modly resigned today. In his resignation letter, a copy of which was obtained by POLITICO (link below), Modly thanked United States secretary of defense Mark Esper and President Trump for their "confidence" in him. It was reported that Esper “did not care for” Modly’s comments on the carrier. As of Tuesday afternoon, neither the Navy nor the Department of Defense had officially responded to further clarify the move.

Thomas Modly hoisted on his own petard

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Mark Esper, United States secretary of defense

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Donald J. Trump

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Martha Raddatz, ABC, World News Tonight with David Muir

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Capt. Brett E. Crozier, who was ridiculed by President Donald J. Trump over his letter pleading for help dealing with his coronavirus-stricken vessel has now been diagnosed with COVID-19, The New York Times reported Sunday.