BS BULLETIN:
- The NAACP is blasting reports that the Navy may remove Pearl Harbor hero Doris Miller’s name from a new aircraft carrier and possibly rename it for President Trump.
- The Navy has not confirmed that the carrier will be renamed for Trump.
- Miller’s family says it was blindsided by the reports.
A reported plan to take the name of Pearl Harbor hero Doris “Dorie” Miller off one of America’s newest aircraft carriers — potentially replacing it with President Donald Trump’s — has created exactly the political explosion you would expect.
But before everybody fires the torpedoes, there is an important distinction: The Navy has not announced that CVN-81 will be renamed for Trump.
Reports say Navy officials are considering changing the name of the future USS Doris Miller, with discussions including the possibility of naming the Gerald R. Ford-class carrier for Trump. The Navy has declined to comment publicly on the reports, while the White House has referred questions to the Defense Department.
That hasn’t stopped the NAACP from going nuclear.
“This is a slap in the face to every war hero and every service member who has worn the uniform,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said.
Johnson accused Trump of treating military service as “another opportunity for personal branding,” adding that “Doris Miller earned his place in American history through courage, sacrifice, and service.”
Whatever anyone thinks of the politics surrounding the proposed name change, Miller’s heroism isn’t really debatable.
Miller was a mess attendant aboard the USS West Virginia on Dec. 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. With bombs falling around him, he helped move his mortally wounded captain and then manned an anti-aircraft machine gun despite having no formal training on the weapon. Miller became the first Black American awarded the Navy Cross. He was killed in action in 1943 when the USS Liscome Bay was torpedoed.
Miller’s name was placed on the carrier during Trump’s first presidency. The Navy announced in January 2020 that CVN-81 would honor Miller. The ship would become the first aircraft carrier named for a Black American and the first named for an enlisted service member.
Miller’s relatives aren’t thrilled with the way they’re learning about the possible change either. Thomas Bledsoe, Miller’s great-nephew, told Virginia station WTKR that the family learned of the reported renaming through the news. “Quite a shock,” Bledsoe said. “We weren’t given any notification.”
There may, however, be more to the story. Reporting indicates Miller could instead be honored on another Navy vessel, while his family has also been told that efforts are underway to recommend him posthumously for the Medal of Honor — an upgrade they have sought for years. Bledsoe called that possibility “very positive.”
Republican Sen. Tim Scott has also come out against changing the carrier’s name, calling the idea “outrageous” and saying Miller is an American hero whose place on the carrier should remain. So this one produces a rather unusual political lineup: the NAACP, Democrats, members of Miller’s family and at least one prominent Republican all saying essentially the same thing.
MY QUICK TAKE
I’m going to commit what has apparently become the most dangerous act in American politics: waiting for the government to actually announce something before becoming hysterical about it.
If the plan really is to bump Doris Miller off the carrier and replace him with Trump, I don’t like it.
Trump has no shortage of things that can eventually bear his name. Doris Miller has this one — and the man earned it while Japanese planes were shooting at him. But if the Navy is considering moving Miller’s name to another warship while simultaneously pushing for the Medal of Honor, that’s a rather different story than “Trump erases Black Pearl Harbor hero.”
Amazing how one or two missing facts can ruin a perfectly good outrage.
DBS WIRE SOURCES:
- The Hill — NAACP slams reports of USS Doris Miller renaming
- WTKR — Doris Miller’s family shocked by reports carrier could be renamed
- ABC News — Navy weighs renaming carrier slated to honor Doris Miller
- KWTX — Report: Future USS Doris Miller could be renamed for Trump
