President Trump shrugged off mounting concerns over the welfare of 5,000 sailors aboard the USS Lincoln on Friday, denying that family members were worried and telling reporters that nine months at sea was "not nearly long enough." His remarks came on the same day that he promised an audience that he would declare the Strait of Hormuz a US territory, and that higher gas prices were a small price to pay so that a "very evil country" wouldn't obtain "a nuclear weapon."
The media's questioning of the US commander-in-chief was prompted by concerns raised by family members of sailors aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, who say their loved ones are suffering from low morale from being stuck on the ship so long, and that they're enduring moldy showers, rationing of food, and a lack of basic hygiene supplies like toothpaste, deodorant and soap. One woman says her son told her the food situation has been so bad at times that a meal consists of only a half-cup of rice and two tortillas. Things are so bad that there are reports that at least two crew members have recently attempted to kill themselves by leaping off the towering deck of the ship, which has been participating in the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Hegseth rejects reports of worsening conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, including a sailor going overboard and declining crew mental health, calling the reports “completely misrepresented.” pic.twitter.
