Sailors Tried to Jump Overboard; Navy Denies Crisis

The Navy, in a statement to CNN and the Washington Examiner: "We have not observed an increase in suicidal ideations or attempts aboard the ship. We take every service member's well-being seriously and have religious, medical and mental health professionals available to assess and address concerns as they arise." A Navy spokesman said senior officials, including the Navy secretary, have met with families to hear concerns directly.

Vice Adm. Joseph Cahill, commander of Naval Surface Forces, told families at one meeting: "We hear you loud and clear (regarding) the impact this has on families, on service members and the long-term ability of us to stand, sustain our forces' health," according to MS NOW, which reviewed recordings.

Blumenthal wrote that if the administration intends to maintain a prolonged campaign, "it must explain how it intends to ensure today's operational requirements do not create tomorrow's readiness crisis."

Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), a Marine veteran on the House Armed Services Committee, called the reports "horrific" on CNN and said his committee will investigate: "It's pretty obvious, though, that these troops are not getting the mental health support that they need."

Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) said families described "moldy showers, broken toilets, no hot water for weeks, meals that came down to half a cup of rice and two tortillas."

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) is calling on the Navy to fly a bipartisan congressional delegation to the ship for an oversight investigation. "CODELs have visited war zones to inspect the conditions of our troops. There is no reason to be denied access," he posted on X.

Retired Navy Capt. Armen Kurdian, who served aboard the Lincoln, offered a counterpoint to CNN affiliate KFMB: "It's not uncommon that a strike group experiences somebody wanting to jump overboard or somebody wanting to commit suicide during a deployment... the fact that it's happening during this deployment is not surprising."