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Trump Directs Navy Propulsion Changes and Faces Scrutiny Over Carrier Deployments
2026-08-15
The BareStory
Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao announced on Friday that the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln will return to port after spending more than 260 days at sea without a port visit, setting a service record. The extended deployment has drawn conflicting reactions from officials. Senator Chris Coons stated that Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth owe the crew and their families an apology. Hegseth downplayed the situation, stating that some deployments are simply longer, while Trump asserted the deployment was not long enough. Cao acknowledged that sailors experienced mental health challenges during the deployment but did not break. The USS George Washington is expected to replace the Lincoln.
In addition to deployment timelines, Trump has ordered new Ford-class aircraft carriers to revert to older steam propulsion systems rather than utilizing newer electromagnetic ones. Analyst Todd Harrison described the propulsion directive as unusual and disruptive, while Senator Mark Kelly questioned the practice of dictating engineering systems. General Atomics stated that reverting to steam systems would introduce major integration, schedule, and cost risks, which could threaten the timeline of the USS Doris Miller, a carrier scheduled for completion by 2034.
Meanwhile, a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report estimated that the first battleship in Trump's proposed "Golden Fleet" would cost over $23 billion, which is $1 billion more than the next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. The CBO warned that building these nuclear-powered battleships could worsen existing backlogs at critical shipyards. Although Trump wants the battleships to be nuclear-powered, the Navy's primary destroyer yards, Bath Iron Works and Ingalls Shipbuilding, currently lack nuclear certification. While Navy leaders suggested Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia for final assembly, that facility is already behind schedule on constructing submarines and aircraft carriers.
Left Perspective
Shielding the Human Core
Defending Technical Expertise
Averting Industrial Overload
Right Perspective
Securing Peace Through Strength
Prioritizing Battle-Tested Systems
Reclaiming Global Maritime Hegemony
Left Perspective
• Shielding the Human Core
Prioritizing the mental health and well-being of service members is essential for long-term military viability and ethical governance. Subjecting the USS Abraham Lincoln crew to a record-breaking 260 days at sea without a port visit inflicts unnecessary psychological trauma, as acknowledged by Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao. Dismissing these hardships or suggesting the deployment was "not long enough" ignores the human cost of military projection, ultimately threatening retention, recruitment, and operational readiness.
• Defending Technical Expertise
Military modernization must rely on rigorous engineering standards and institutional expertise rather than top-down political decrees. Forcing new Ford-class carriers to abandon electromagnetic systems for outdated steam propulsion disrupts established supply chains and introduces massive integration and cost risks, threatening the timeline of the USS Doris Miller. Arbitrarily dictating complex engineering decisions from the executive branch undermines military efficiency and compromises technological progress.
• Averting Industrial Overload
Sensible defense planning requires fiscal discipline and realistic assessments of domestic industrial capacity. Spending over $23 billion on a single "Golden Fleet" battleship—more than a state-of-the-art nuclear carrier—while major shipyards face severe backlogs and lack necessary nuclear certifications is a strategic blunder. Funneling resources into logistically unfeasible projects further delays critical submarine and carrier construction at facilities like Newport News, weakening overall security.
Right Perspective
• Securing Peace Through Strength
Global stability and national security demand an uninterrupted forward presence to deter adversaries, requiring sacrifices from our naval forces. While extended deployments like the USS Abraham Lincoln's 260 days at sea are grueling, maintaining operational readiness in highly contested regions is paramount. Treating these strategic necessities as failures or demanding apologies undermines the military's core mission of endurance and power projection in a hostile world.
• Prioritizing Battle-Tested Systems
Combat readiness must be anchored in reliable, proven technology rather than over-engineered and fragile experimental systems. Reverting to legacy steam propulsion systems on Ford-class carriers ensures that the Navy relies on technology with decades of successful operational history. Avoiding the persistent technical glitches and maintenance bottlenecks of unproven electromagnetic systems ultimately safeguards combat capabilities and prevents reliance on vulnerable supply chains.
• Reclaiming Global Maritime Hegemony
Deterring near-peer adversaries requires bold investments in unmatched, high-impact naval assets like the proposed "Golden Fleet" battleships. Although the $23 billion cost and nuclear certification requirements present domestic industrial challenges, these projects push the defense industrial base to expand its capacity and capabilities. Adapting shipyards like Newport News, Bath Iron Works, or Ingalls to meet these ambitious standards is a necessary catalyst for rebuilding America's shipbuilding supremacy.
How it may affect me
As a U.S. reader:
• In the short term, family members of naval personnel may experience longer periods of separation and psychological strain due to extended sea deployments, which could ultimately impact military recruitment and retention.
• In the long term, taxpayers may see significant federal funding directed toward the proposed twenty-three billion dollar battleships, which cost more than nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.
• Communities and workers near major domestic shipyards, such as Newport News, Bath Iron Works, and Ingalls Shipbuilding, could experience shifts in employment demands as these facilities face pressure to resolve backlogs and acquire nuclear certifications.
• National security readiness could be affected by potential delays in the completion of critical defense assets, such as the USS Doris Miller aircraft carrier, due to scheduled integration risks from changing propulsion systems.
