Posted on 06/02/2019 1:46:13 PM PDT by Ennis85
The Pentagon sent a stern message to the White House over the weekend after it was confirmed officials directed the United States Navy to minimize the presence of the USS John McCain during President Donald Trump's recent visit to Japan.
What did the Pentagon say?
Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan directed his staff over the weekend to reaffirm that the U.S. military will not be "politicized," Reuters reported.
"Secretary Shanahan directed his chief of staff to speak with the White House military office and reaffirm his mandate that the Department of Defense will not be politicized," Pentagon spokesman Lt. Colonel Joe Buccino said. "The chief of staff reported that he did reinforce this message."
While traveling to Seoul on Sunday, Shanahan reaffirmed his message to reporters accompanying him on the trip.
"There is no room for politicizing the military," Shanahan said.
What is the background?
On Saturday, the U.S. Navy confirmed the White House requested the USS John McCain be moved during Trump's visit to Japan, NBC News reported.
"A request was made to the U.S. Navy to minimize the visibility of USS John S. McCain, however, all ships remained in their normal configuration during the President's visit," Rear Admiral Charlie Brown, chief of information, told NBC.
According to Reuters, the request originated in the White House military office. Apparently, staffers believed the optics would not be good for the president since McCain was one of his biggest political rivals.
However, as Brown confirmed, senior Navy leadership refused comply with the request.
What is the White House saying?
On Sunday, White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney downplayed the incident, calling the request "not ... unreasonable."
https://twitter.com/MeetThePress/status/1135176786873081857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1135176786873081857%7Ctwgr%5E393039363b636f6e74726f6c&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theblaze.com%2Fres%2Fcommunity%2Ftwitter_embed%2F%3Fiframe_id%3Dtwitter-embed-1135176786873081857%26created_ts%3D1559482211.0%26screen_name%3DMeetThePress%26text%3DWATCH%253A%2BActing%2BWhite%2BHouse%2BChief%2Bof%2BStaff%2BMick%2BMulvaney%2Btells%2BChuck%2BTodd%2Bthat%2Bmoving%2Ba%2BNavy%2Bship%2Bout%2Bof%2Bsight%2Bfrom%2Bt%25E2%2580%25A6%2Bhttps%253A%252F%252Ft.co%252FW5ZvDSw0DM%26id%3D1135176786873081857%26name%3DMeet%2Bthe%2BPress
Pretty sure the Commander In Chief can deploy any asset anywhere at anytime for any reason. Refusal to obey such orders would be insubordination and punishable. Grandstanding like this IS politizing the situation.
Deep state assholes. They can STFU and do their jobs, and not make public political accusations. Which dike general leaked this?
Dyke.
USS John S. McCain Collision, A Year Later
By: Ben Werner
August 21, 2018 4:03 PM
https://news.usni.org/2018/08/21/35947
Last year, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) collided with a merchant ship while approaching Singapore, an incident that resulted in the death of 10 sailors and prompted the Navy to take a hard look at how it operates and trains crews on forward-deployed ships.
McCain was the second deadly collision to occur last summer, and the fourth in a series of U.S. warship collisions and groundings to occur in 2017. On June 17, USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62) collided with a merchant ship, killing seven sailors.
A year later, McCain is undergoing extensive repairs, the Navy has completed two reviews of how it trains crews and operates ships in its surface warfare community, the Navy has taken actions to hold people accountable for the collision, and the Navy added a namesake to the ship.
Ship Repair Efforts
The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) departs Subic Bay, Philippines aboard heavy lift transport vessel MV Treasure, Nov. 28. Treasure will transport McCain to Fleet Activities Yokosuka to undergo repairs.
When McCain collided with a civilian tanker, the merchant ship’s bulbous bow struck the port side of McCain, causing extensive flooding below the waterline, and crumpling berthing and some mechanical areas. The damage was severe, but the flooding did not damage many of McCain’s electronic components. The Navy determined McCain could moved from Singapore, where it pulled into port following the collision, and repaired in Japan.
However, a crack developed in McCain’s hull while being transported to Japan on a heavy lift transport. Due to the 4-inch crack amidship on McCain’s starboard side and bad weather from a Typhoon, McCain’s transit to Japan took a detour to the Philippines.
In December, McCain arrived in Japan to begin an estimated year-long, $223-million repair job to make the ship seaworthy again. This project will be one of the largest to occur at U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility-Japan Regional Maintenance Center, according to the Navy.
Legislative Fallout
Meanwhile, Congress acted to create some reforms to help prevent such incidents from occurring again. The recently approved Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act put into law several recommendations made by two internal Navy studies the service initiated following the death McCain and Fitzgerald collisions.
The bill limits how long ships can remain forward-deployed, requires readiness reviews, requires ships to always meet minimum staffing and establishes a new logbook policy for officers on watch.
Legal Actions
Cmdr. Alfredo J. Sanchez. US Navy Photo
The Navy has also acted to hold crew members and leaders accountable for the collision. The Navy conducted a series of non-judicial punishment hearings for several members of the crews of both McCain and Fitzgerald.
In September, U.S. 7th Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Philip Sawyer removed Rear Adm. Charles Williams, commander of Combined Task Force (CTF) 70, and Capt. Jeffery Bennett, commodore of Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, from their positions due to a loss of confidence in their ability to command. DESRON 15 includes command over both Fitzgerald and McCain, and CTF- 70.
In February, Cmdr. Jessie L. Sanchez, former executive officer of McCain, was found guilty of violating Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice during a non-judicial punishment hearing in Washington, D.C. Sanchez received a punitive letter of reprimand in the hearing overseen by Adm. James Caldwell, who is serving as the consolidated decision authority for all punitive actions related to the two destroyer collisions.
In May, former McCain commander Cmdr. Alfredo J. Sanchez pleaded guilty to a single charge of negligence for his role in the incident that killed 10 sailors. Sanchez admitted to not setting the proper watch team for the busy shipping lane the ship was entering, or taking proper action when the bridge crew lost control of the ship due to a poor understanding of the helm controls.
Sanchez was sentenced to a punitive letter of reprimand and forfeiture of $6,000 in pay. He also requested to retire as part of the agreement. Sanchez also has a federal misdemeanor on his record as a result of the court-martial.
Also in May, McCain Chief Boatswain’s Mate Jeffery Butler entered a guilty plea to one count of dereliction of duty and was reduced in rank to E-6.
McCain Namesake
Adm. John S. McCain Sr., Adm. John S. McCain Jr., Sen. John S. McCain (R-Ariz.)
In July, Sen. John S. McCain (R-Ariz.) had his name added to USS John S. McCain (DDG-56). When commissioned in 1994, the ship was named for the senior senator from Arizona’s grandfather, Adm. John S. McCain Sr., who served as a carrier task force commander during World War II; and his father, Adm. John S. McCain Jr., who served as U.S. Pacific Command commander from 1968 to 1972. Sen. McCain himself was a naval aviator who was shot down during the Vietnam War and held as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam for five and a half years, including the entire span of his father’s tenure as PACOM.
Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer announced the new name added to McCain while visiting the destroyer, which is currently being repaired at Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan.
When did the military brass become apolitical?
McCain was not just a political rival.. He attempted to OVERTHROW A SITTING PRESIDENT BY PARTICIPATING IN ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES. Yeesh.
Naming a major ship of the line the “John McCain” is not politicizing the Armed Forces?
The Navy coulda chosen better.
[Yah, I know it was named for two other, related blokes.]
That is true, but not as it wished. During those 60 years it has served as the house pet of some politically radical administrations who had little or no idea of how to best use the world's most capable military.
The ship was originally named after John S. McCain, Sr., and John S. McCain, Jr., both admirals in the US Navy. But I guess that since the hero songbird has the same name, he got included somehow, after the fact.
Well, it is you buying into the idea that I follow the media spin. I should have written my reply, “President Trump would not be off base.....” Satisfied?
I have an extreme bias against the small man, named John McCain, small in stature and small in character. As an aviator, I would have been fired after the first “mishap” in which McCain was involved. He had a few more and was still promoted and then sent into combat. A disaster! Being the descendant of Admirals is the only reason he was allowed to succeed/progress. And, yes, I voted for him because the alternative, the Kenyan, was not suitable to hold office.
There is no way the President would disrespect sailors and Marines on a US naval vessel, no matter what the name.
As Mick Mulvaney pointed out on NBC, this entire affair is probably due to a minor decision of some overzealous junior WH advance team staffer.
In other words, fuggedabaddit.
Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. You could starve.
I’d fire someone for doing such a stunt without my permission. NO ONE in the whitehut has the right to make military orders except the president.
Big nothing burger. Over analyzed....breathlessly
You’d think griper would be more worried about the party that wants to decimate the military.
No one seems to want to do that.
Everyone is talking back and forth and no one seems interested in finding out who started this.
Seems like they “changed the name” of this vessel recently when they added the third John McCain.
I know that too, but in the age of revisionist history and news media that lies whenever it serves their purposes, you have to wonder how long it will be before the truth has been replaced with the convenient fiction that the ship was in fact named after the Songbird, aka McTurd.
I was being facetious and it would create bad optics for no real purpose, but just wait and see if McTurd isn’t “grandfathered” in as one who is honored by the ship named after his grandfather (or father).
The USS JOHN S. MCCAIN is certainly not named after the traitor Senator. It is named after his father and grandfather. III can rot in hell for eternity.
https://www.public.navy.mil/surfor/ddg56/Pages/History.aspx
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