Former Vice President Joe Biden said Sunday that the Navy’s decision to remove the captain who sounded the alarm on coronavirus cases aboard his ship is “close to criminal.”
“I think it’s close to criminal the way they’re dealing with this guy,” Biden told ABC’s “This Week.” “Not his conduct. The idea that this man stood up and said what had to be said, got it out that his troops, his — his Navy personnel were in danger — in danger.”
“Look at how many have the virus,” he continued, adding, “I think the guy should … have a commendation rather than be fired.”
Thursday, the Navy announced it relieved Capt. Brett Crozier of his post commanding the USS Theodore Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier with a crew of nearly 5,000. Crozier will keep his rank and remain in the Navy.
Crozier had earlier in the week sent a strongly worded letter to Navy leadership detailing his concerns about how COVID-19 was spreading on his ship. That letter was leaked to the media.
Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said at a Thursday news conference that Crozier was removed from his post for breaking the chain of command, sending his letter over “non-secure unclassified email” to a “broad array of people.”
“I have no doubt in my mind that Captain Crozier did what he thought was in the best interest of the safety and well-being of his crew,” Modly said. “Unfortunately, it did the opposite. It unnecessarily raised the alarm of the families of our sailors and Marines with no plans to address those concerns.”
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Modly, who said the decision was his alone, said that Crozier “allowed the complexity of the challenge of the COVID breakout on the ship to overwhelm his ability to act professionally.”
The ship, which was operating in the Pacific, pulled into port in Guam last month after multiple crewmen tested positive for the virus. The total number of infected rose to 93 by Wednesday, and more than 1,000 people were taken off the ship and placed into isolation on Guam.
Asked on Saturday about Crozier’s removal, Trump said he didn’t “know much about it” before tearing into the Navy captain for authoring his letter.
“The letter was a five-page letter from a captain, and the letter was all over the place,” Trump said. “That’s not appropriate. I don’t think that’s appropriate. And these are tough people. These are tough, strong people. I thought it looked terrible, to be honest with you.”
“Now they made their decision. I didn’t make the decision. Secretary of Defense was involved and a lot of people were involved,” Trump continued. “I thought it was terrible what he did, to write a letter? I mean, this isn’t a class on literature. This is a captain of a massive ship that’s nuclear powered, and he shouldn’t be talking that way in a letter.”
As Crozier was leaving his ship following his removal, a crowd of cheering and applauding sailors was seen on video cheering his name and waving goodbye.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Sunday defended Modly, saying that he “made a tough decision, a tough call.”
“I have full faith and confidence in him and the Navy leadership, and I supported their decision,” he continued.
Asked about a Washington Post report that the White House directed the Navy to remove Crozier, Esper said it was Modly’s call alone.
“This is a chain of command issue,” Esper said. ‘It’s an issue of trust and confidence in the captain of the ship.”
Speaking with CNN’s “State of the Union,” Esper also said, “We need to take care of the sailors on the ship.”
“We need to ensure their well-being and get that ship back out to sea as soon as possible,” he continued. “I’m pleased to report, right now, over half of the ship has been tested. Only 155 sailors have come up positive. Those are all mild and moderate. There have been no hospitalizations whatsoever.”
Esper said that while there is “an investigation ongoing” into Crozier, there “is not a need necessarily to remove every sailor from the ship.”
“You actually cannot do that, because there’s nuclear reactors to be run,” he said. “You have very sensitive equipment. You have weapons on board that ship, so you cannot completely evacuate the ship.”
