WASHINGTON, April 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US naval commander whose widely publicized plea for help for his coronavirus-affected crew led to his
dismissal has reportedly himself tested positive for the disease.
Captain Brett Crozier’s COVID-19 test result was reported by the New York Times, just hours after US Defense Secretary Mark Esper defended the
captain’s firing.
Esper told ABC that Navy Secretary Thomas Modly had “made a tough decision, tough call” in deciding to fire Crozier from his command of the aircraft carrier USS Roosevelt, now docked in Guam.
The firing was widely condemned as a callous and unfair punishment of a
respected officer who was looking out for the welfare of his crew when he
implored his superiors to let him quickly vacate the ship after it docked in
Guam.
But some senior Pentagon officials said Crozier erred by letting his plea
go public.
Crozier “demonstrated extremely poor judgment in the middle of a crisis,”
needlessly worrying family members and undermining the chain of command, Modly said.
Esper told CNN that more than half the Roosevelt’s 4,800-member crew had now been tested for the coronavirus. In all, 155 sailors tested positive but none required hospitalization, he said.
Trump, speaking in a news conference Saturday, supported the dismissal. “He shouldn’t be talking that way in a letter,” he said of Crozier. “I thought it was terrible what he did.”
The Times, in reporting Crozier’s test result, cited two of his former
classmates at the US Naval Academy. It said he had begun exhibiting symptoms before leaving the ship on Thursday.
Democrats have also sharply criticized the dismissal. Joe Biden, the leading Democratic candidate for president, condemned the firing on Sunday, telling ABC it was “close to criminal.”
“I think he should have a commendation rather than be fired,”the former
vice president said.
And a statement from Democratic leaders of the House Armed Services
Committee said Crozier might not have handled the matter perfectly, but that his dismissal was an “overreaction.”
The military has been called to help the fight against the coronavirus
inside the US.
Trump said Saturday that 1,000 military personnel, mostly doctors and
nurses, would be deployed to help in New York City, the epicenter of the US
outbreak.
Troops have already been helping out at the Javits Convention Center, which has been transformed into an enormous hospital. — NNN-AGENCIES