Navy Secretary Offers To Resign After Calling Captain 'Stupid'

WASHINGTON, DC — Thomas Modly, acting U.S. Navy secretary, has offered to resign following a string of events that were set in motion when he fired Capt. Brett Crozier of the USS Theodore Roosevelt last week, according to multiple reports.

Crozier was terminated after he emailed several Navy officials, rather than going through secure channels, requesting help for the coronavirus-stricken aircraft carrier. More than 170 coronavirus cases have been recorded aboard the Roosevelt since the ship docked in Da Nang, Vietnam, last month, The New York Times reported.

Modly submitted his resignation letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper Tuesday, a senior defense official with knowledge of the matter told Politico. It's unclear whether Esper will accept the resignation.

When relieving Crozier of duty, Modly said he'd lost confidence in Crozier for having shown “extremely poor judgment.”

Following Crozier's firing, Modly flew to the ship, at port in Guam, and gave a profanity-laced address to the ship's crew during which he called Crozier's actions "naive" and "stupid." He also rebuked the crew for cheering the captain as he left the ship, the Times reported.

On Monday night, at Esper’s insistence, Modly issued a public apology.

"I want to apologize to the Navy for my recent comments to the crew of the TR," Modly said in the statement issued late Monday. "Let me be clear, I do not think Captain Brett Crozier is naive nor stupid. I think, and always believed him to be the opposite."

But by then the calls among Democrats in Congress for his resignation were mounting. Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said Modly's comments warrant his ouster, ABC News reported.

"Acting Secretary Modly's decision to address the sailors on the Roosevelt and personally attack Captain Crozier shows a tone-deaf approach more focused on personal ego than one of the calm, steady leadership we so desperately need in this crisis," Smith said.

"I no longer have confidence in acting Secretary Modly's leadership of the Navy and believe he should be removed from his position," the committee chairman added.