Mayday on the USS Lincoln

By Julie Roland

Somewhere in the Middle East, sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln are 265 days into a deployment–with clogged toilets, broken water fountains, rationed and rotten food, and an overwhelmed medical staff. Apparently, it is so bad some sailors will do anything to escape.

Back in April, when asked about the conditions, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called it “fake news.” If that were the case, then how come 200 family members just showed up to a town hall in San Diego to confront Navy Secretary Hung Cao over the horrific conditions they have all heard about from their loved ones deployed on board?

Their reports are harrowing. One wife told reporters her husband texted her that he “hopes he doesn’t wake up tomorrow.” Secretary Hegseth said the problems are being misrepresented, but has offered no specific examples of what was misrepresented. The Navy’s official response is that it hasn’t “identified an increase in reported suicidal ideation or suicide attempts,” and that sailors have “continuous access to clean water, functional AC and healthy meal options.” In other words, the Pentagon’s PR strategy appears to be gaslighting.

The magnitude of the difference between official information from the Pentagon and firsthand reports from the crew should be troubling. The Department is either being intentionally deceptive or is just that out-of-touch. Either way, this feeds doubt among civilians, military-connected, and the troops themselves, about whether the institution actually cares about the welfare of its members.

Public trust in the armed forces matters a great deal to national security. Confidence in the military is at its lowest point in almost a decade, down 21 points since 2018. Now, as the families told Secretary Cao, the Pentagon has broken their trust. The consequences of that could be dire.

For anyone who says sailors signed up for this, it’s worth flagging the effect such a sentiment could have on recruitment, retention, and readiness in general. Already, the number of military personnel inquiring about conscientious objection has risen by 1,000% since the start of the Iran war. Who wants to stay in–let alone join–an organization that says contaminated water, broken plumbing, inadequate healthcare, indefinite deployments, and a lack of transparency are all just the price of doing business? When the number of 18-year olds is about to plummet and recruiters admit it has “never been harder to get young people interested in service,” alienating the next generation of potential recruits is a significant threat to our manpower. Iraq and Afghanistan taught us the cost of treating service members like this. Let’s not learn this lesson again, especially while the Trump administration refuses to call it a “war” to circumvent the Constitution.

So what is our leadership doing to take care of its warfighters?

Since the Lincoln deployed, Hegseth has spent his energy on a public fight with the Ivy League over military fellowships, an ultimatum to the Boy Scouts over bathroom policy, personally blocking the promotions of more than a dozen senior officers, and rolling out a mandatory testosterone testing program. But in the Middle East, where 5,000 sailors are on board the USS Lincoln, going without a port call for 200 days, there are showers covered in mold. Sailors shouldn’t have to work in these conditions to prove their warrior ethos.

Perhaps a defense secretary who has built a public identity around the aesthetics of toughness may be a poorly equipped person to recognize when actual human beings have hit an actual human limit. His brand depends on pretending that limit doesn’t exist. But service members are jumping overboard in the hopes of escaping these conditions.

While Secretary Hegseth performs as the warrior character he created, actual warriors are stranded on an aircraft carrier with no end in sight. Perhaps he should stop trying to be such a showman and start showing up for his sailors.

Though the USS Washington may be on its way to relieve Lincoln finally, these sailors have been suffering for far too long. Only time will tell how eager and able they are to sign up for future missions. In the meantime, Secretary Hegseth needs to get serious about doing his job and figure out his priorities. Leadership means looking out for your people, not just looking tough for the cameras or acting tough on Boy Scouts.

Ultimately, Hegseth is the man responsible for overseeing hundreds of thousands of active-duty service members who are counting on him. It’s time he rose to the occasion, or stepped aside.

Julie Roland is a former Navy Lieutenant Commander and helicopter pilot who earned her Juris Doctor in her free time while active duty. She now holds a Master of Laws in Global Business Law from Columbia University, is currently serving as the District Director for New York State Assembly District 73 in Manhattan.