Kathrine Frich
He argued the president ignores the troops.
When you spend months trapped in a steel box in the middle of the ocean, the strain eventually shows.
Everyone has a breaking point when pushed hard enough. But what happens when the people at the top refuse to acknowledge the pressure cooker below?
Boiling point at sea
A bitter clash has erupted over the toll on military crews deployed to the Middle East. The USS Abraham Lincoln sits right at the center of the storm.
The crew has spent over 240 continuous days at sea. The situation is so desperate that some sailors have attempted to jump overboard, according to the Military Times cited by Huffpost.
But the commander in chief sees things differently. President Donald Trump dismissed reports of exhaustion during a press briefing in Maryland on Friday.
He bluntly stated that the uninterrupted deployment was “not nearly long enough.”
A combat veteran bites back
Those remarks triggered a furious response. On Saturday, Democratic Representative Seth Moulton, a former Marine, went on television to fire back.
“Typical from a draft dodger, not a surprise,” Moulton told MS NOW.
He argued the president ignores the troops. Moulton said Trump is “going to spend his weekend at his luxury golf course, not thinking one bit about the troops who he’s put in harm’s way for a war of choice that he and Hegseth are losing.”
Shifting the blame
Meanwhile, military families are living a nightmare. Annabelle Loma is the wife of a sailor who tried to jump from the ship.
She told the Military Times her husband felt totally broken. Loma noted he believed “he’ll get a dishonorable discharge, and just because he was burnt out, his 13-year career is ruined, just like that.”
Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao pushed back on Friday. He confirmed the ship will soon return home, but he pointed a finger directly at the press.
“Unfortunately, the media are trying to paint our warriors as victims,” Cao wrote.
Out of touch
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also dismissed the reports. He called the concerns “completely misrepresented” and insisted the military provides every crew exactly what they need.
Moulton refused to let that stand. He blasted the military chain of command for failing to grasp the situation.
He specifically called out Hegseth for spending time filming promotional videos in the jungle instead of checking on the struggling sailors.
“The Navy secretary seems totally out of touch with reality here,” Moulton said.
Sources: Huffpost, MS NOW, Military Times
