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\nFormer Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly sent a letter to the fleet following his resignation Tuesday. (MC1 Sarah Villegas\/Navy)<\/p>\n
\nFormer Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly sent a letter to the fleet following his resignation Tuesday. (MC1 Sarah Villegas\/Navy)<\/p>\n
I was greeted with this in my in-box this morning, and Jeff LPH 3 sends.<\/p>\n
J.D. Simkins<\/strong><\/p>\n Acting Secretary of the NavyThomas Modly resigned Tuesday <\/a>, capping perhaps the most tumultuous 24-hour public relations fiasco the sea service has ever encountered.<\/p>\n Defense Secretary Mark Esper confirmed Modly\u2019s resignation in an official statement, saying, \u201cHe resigned on his own accord, putting the Navy and the Sailors above self so that the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt, and the Navy as an institution, can move forward,\u201d Esper said in an official statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHis care for the Sailors was genuine. Secretary Modly served the nation for many years, both in and out of uniform. I have the deepest respect for anyone who serves our country, and who places the greater good above all else. … I wish him all the best.\u201d<\/p>\n Modly\u2019s resignation comes less than 24 hours after numerous Democratic members of Congress called for his firing over his handling of the dismissal of Capt. Brett Crozier, the former commanding officer of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt who penned a leaked letter<\/a> pleading for U.S. intervention to stifle a COVID-19 outbreak on the 4,800-person ship.<\/p>\n As his last act as Navy secretary \u2014 before James McPherson<\/a>, who was confirmed as the Army\u2019s number two official just 15 days ago<\/a>, takes over the newly vacated role \u2014 Modly distributed one final memo to the fleet.<\/p>\n The text of that letter, in its entirety, is as follows:<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I tried to slog through his final message. Read the letter here: Navy Times<\/a><\/p>\n Thanks, Jeff.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"