Donald Trump said the USS Abraham Lincoln is “beautifully maintained” despite reports of deteriorating living conditions during the aircraft carrier’s lengthy deployment in the Strait of Hormuz. At a White House press availability on Monday, he dismissed the reporting as fake news and told CNN reporter Kristen Holmes to “be quiet.”
Trump said he was relying on third-hand accounts from an unnamed retired admiral and unidentified others. He did not name either the admiral or the people he said had verified the carrier’s condition.
What Trump said about the carrier
Trump described a conversation with a retired admiral who said he had served on ships at sea longer than the Lincoln and that people aboard the carrier told him it was being maintained and cared for. Trump presented those accounts as a rebuttal to reports about the ship’s conditions.
The USS Abraham Lincoln is a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier capable of lengthy deployments without refueling. It left port in San Diego on 21 November 2025 and has set a modern record for the longest period at sea without a port call, with more than 250 days since it touched land.
Related coverage: USS Abraham Lincoln sailors face scrutiny in ninth month at sea.
Reports describe shortages and plumbing problems
Navy Times and Stars and Stripes have largely confirmed reports describing shortages of supplies and water, as well as plumbing problems aboard the Lincoln. Their reporting also said several sailors had attempted to leap from the ship.
The accounts prompted Democratic lawmakers to demand answers from the Pentagon. The reports concern a deployment taking place amid the Iran war, with sailors and their families facing months apart.
Families challenge the dismissals
Naval families have reacted angrily to Trump’s and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s dismissal of concerns about the pressures and conditions affecting relatives deployed on US warships. Three families described following the physical and mental strain on their relatives with mounting alarm.
The sister of a Lincoln crew member, who spoke anonymously because she feared retribution, said she was angry that the president and defense secretary were dismissing service members’ experiences and calling them liars.
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