Amid reports about horrible conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln during its long deployment in the Middle East, a group of military families has been heavily critical of President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for dismissing their concerns.
Earlier this week, when asked whether families were worried about conditions aboard, Trump replied, “No, they’re not.” When asked if the Lincoln had been deployed too long, the president replied, “Not nearly long enough.”
According to The Guardian, the newspaper spoke with three Naval families whose members serve aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Tripoli, all of whom spoke anonymously.
“They spoke of insufficient nourishment that has led to close relatives losing 20- 30 lb in weight since they were sent to the Middle East five months ago, leaving one sailor “emaciated”, according to his mother,” the newspaper said of the families. “They also spoke of low-quality drinking water and scarce mental health counseling and support despite the intense burden of being at sea for months on end without making land.”
Great! I’m glad to hear the families of US sailors denounce Trump and are speaking out! ✅ https://t.co/IkNmPeG4yO pic.twitter.com/HMXxtmy5JY
— Annie (@AnnieForTruth) August 18, 2026
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“I grew up in a United States where you have to be very respectful of the military, as they’re making the ultimate sacrifice and protecting their country, and now you have the commander-in-chief and defense secretary dismissing their experiences and calling them liars. I’m really angry,” the sister of one Lincoln crew member told the Guardian. “It’s a feeling of betrayal. These are frustrating, false and careless comments, and they are going to have a lot of consequences for my brother.”
“My son signed up to serve his country. But why isn’t his country serving him? They are not feeding him or supplying clean water, and living conditions are horrible. He didn’t sign up for that,” the mother of a sailor on the Lincoln told the newspaper.
“He’s emaciated,” the mother said of a sailor on the Tripoli said. “This is so insane – he didn’t deserve this. When I saw that photo I was livid. It should not have gotten this far.”
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
