Acting Navy Secretary Modly Resigns Following Backlash Over Rebuke Of Former USS Theodore Roosevelt Commander

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly resigned Tuesday following an uproar over his handling of a coronavirus outbreak on an aircraft carrier and his harsh rebuke of the ship’s commander after his desperate plea for help was leaked to the media.

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper confirmed Tuesday he had accepted Modly’s resignation, which comes a day after Modly lanched a profanity-filled tirade against former USS Theodore Roosevelt commander Capt. Brett Crozier in remarks to sailors aboard the ship.

Modly – who flew 8,000 miles to where the ship was docked in Guam to deliver the address – said Crozier was “too stupid or too naive” to command the ship for allowing his warning about the coronavirus to be disseminated by the media. Modly also accused the Santa Rosa native of committing a “betrayal” and creating a “big controversy” in Washington and of personally leaking his warning to the San Francisco Chronicle.