Trump Faces Backlash Over Dismissal of USS Abraham Lincoln Concerns

WASHINGTON — President Trump denied family members of sailors and Marines aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln were concerned about their loved ones Friday, adding that the aircraft carrier would soon be relieved following a nine-month deployment.

“That ship is moving right now, or very shortly, and it’s being replaced with another very similar ship,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews before departing for an event on Long Island.

Multiple reports have emerged in recent days that poor living conditions and a lack of downtime has taken a severe mental toll on the roughly 5,000 service members on board the carrier, which has been stationed in the Arabian Sea since January, before the start of combat operations against Iran.