U.S. lawmakers are demanding new answers about the situation aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, suggesting reports coming out of the carrier may be belying a troubling pattern.
In at least three separate appeals, Democrats have asked for more information about how the Navy prepared for the ship’s record-breaking deployment.
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The aircraft carrier departed from San Diego, California in November and has since taken part in military operations against Venezuela and the war against Iran.
The ship has not yet visited the port since then. It spent more than 260 days at sea, breaking the U.S. Navy’s record for longest non-stop deployment.
In recent weeks, there have been reports of crew members attempting to jump from the ship as food and other supplies ran low.
On Tuesday, U.S. Representative Pat Ryan released a letter signed by 22 members of Congress addressed to Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Kao.
The report said the long-term deployment “has become a pattern in the administration’s response to war against Iran.”
The war that started on February 28th shows no signs of ending. Ryan noted that the USS Gerald Ford also broke records for length of deployment as part of the Iran war and was also the subject of alarming reports about the health burden on its sailors. The ship returned to the United States in April.
“The Lincoln situation, reported on the heels of the Ford situation report, has raised concerns in Congress and the public that the State Department is not adapting quickly enough to the situation,” Ryan said in the Aug. 14 letter.
He also questioned whether U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees military operations in the Middle East, is “taking appropriate steps to mitigate the continuing challenges in our fleet.”
A delegation of California lawmakers, including Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, also sent a letter to the Pentagon calling for an investigation.
Separately, a group of Democratic senators sent another letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on August 15, demanding answers and demanding accountability.
“This is a sign of poor planning on both your part and the President’s part, compounded by the very unsound decision to go to war with Iran,” the letter said.
“The endless developments caused by endless wars have real consequences for service members, and we are now seeing the consequences.”
The call for further information comes as the USS Lincoln prepares to return home.
Cao announced last week that the USS Lincoln would soon return to the United States. The announcement coincided with reports that the USS George Washington was rerouted from the Pacific Ocean to replace a fellow aircraft carrier.
But the withdrawal of the USS Washington will leave no aircraft carriers in the Western Pacific, which has long been portrayed as an area of strategic interest for the United States as it seeks to check China’s territorial ambitions.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump and defense officials claim that reports about the situation aboard the USS Lincoln are exaggerated.
Hegseth, for example, said reports about the situation were “totally misrepresented.” President Trump said last week that the ship had not been deployed “long enough.”
On Monday, the president dismissed questions about the status of the USS Lincoln as part of a “CNN fake report.”
Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, also issued a statement on social media this week, saying he visited the USS Lincoln in recent days and found the crew “awe-inspiring.”
“This doesn’t mean everything is perfect,” he wrote. “If you were to look up any of the approximately 4 million Navy veterans in the United States today, they would probably tell you that long-term service at sea is not for everyone.”
But he praised the USS Lincoln’s leadership for making “mental health and crew resiliency” a top priority.
Unlike Democrats, President Trump’s Republicans have shown little reaction to reports of the USS Lincoln’s mental health strain and shortages.
But Rep. Don Bacon expressed his concerns Sunday in an interview on CBS News’ Face the Nation show.
“We should monitor,” he said.
