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Sen. Ruben Gallego on handling of USS Lincoln conditions: ‘That’s not proper leadership’

An F/A-18E Super Hornet prepares to launch from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in support of Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28, 2026.
AP / U.S. Navy via AP
An F/A-18E Super Hornet prepares to launch from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in support of Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28, 2026.

Updated August 14, 2026 at 10:30 AM ET

Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona is calling for greater oversight of conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying he has heard reports of long hours, limited food and mounting stress among sailors.

Gallego, a Marine veteran who deployed to Iraq, said in an interview with Morning Edition that he has been in contact with the spouse of an experienced sailor aboard the carrier, who described deteriorating morale and difficult working conditions.

The Lincoln has been at sea for more than 260 consecutive days, a record. The carrier, with more than 5,000 sailors, has been supporting U.S. and Israeli operations in the war against Iran.

Steve Walsh of member station WHRO reports the war has complicated resupply efforts after Iran attacked the Navy’s main regional hub in Bahrain. Democratic lawmakers are now calling for the Pentagon to investigate reports of food shortages, broken toilets and inadequate mental health care aboard the Lincoln.

The Navy says it has seen no increase in suicidal ideation or suicide attempts aboard the ship. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has also pushed back on reports of poor conditions.

Gallego is among lawmakers seeking to visit the carrier.

“They’re just kind of winging it right now,” he said, criticizing the Trump administration’s planning. Regarding the Pentagon’s handling of the deployment itself, Gallego added: “That’s not proper leadership.”

Listen to the full interview by clicking the play button above. If you or someone you know may be considering suicide or is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

The digital version was edited by Treye Green.

Copyright 2026 NPR

Michel Martin is the weekend host of All Things Considered and host of the Consider This Saturday podcast, where she draws on her deep reporting and interviewing experience to dig in to the week's news. Outside the studio, she has also hosted "Michel Martin: Going There," an ambitious live event series in collaboration with Member Stations.

Martin came to NPR in 2006 and launched Tell Me More, a one-hour daily NPR news and talk show that aired on NPR stations nationwide from 2007-2014 and dipped into thousands of important conversations taking place in the corridors of power, but also in houses of worship, and barber shops and beauty shops, at PTA meetings, town halls, and at the kitchen table.

She has spent more than 25 years as a journalist — first in print with major newspapers and then in television. Tell Me More marked her debut as a full-time public radio show host. Martin says, "What makes public radio special is that it's got both intimacy and reach all at once. For the cost of a phone call, I can take you around the world. But I'm right there with you in your car, in your living room or kitchen or office, in your iPod. Radio itself is an incredible tool and when you combine that with the global resources of NPR plus the commitment to quality, responsibility and civility, it's an unbeatable combination."

Martin has also served as contributor and substitute host for NPR newsmagazines and talk shows, including Talk of the Nation and News & Notes.

Martin joined NPR from ABC News, where she worked since 1992. She served as correspondent for Nightline from 1996 to 2006, reporting on such subjects as the congressional budget battles, the U.S. embassy bombings in Africa, racial profiling and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. At ABC, she also contributed to numerous programs and specials, including the network's award-winning coverage of Sept. 11, a documentary on the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas controversy, a critically acclaimed AIDS special and reports for the ongoing series "America in Black and White." Martin reported for the ABC newsmagazine Day One, winning an Emmy for her coverage of the international campaign to ban the use of landmines, and was a regular panelist on This Week with George Stephanopoulos. She also hosted the 13-episode series Life 360, an innovative program partnership between Oregon Public Broadcasting and Nightline incorporating documentary film, performance and personal narrative; it aired on public television stations across the country.

Before joining ABC, Martin covered state and local politics for the Washington Post and national politics and policy at the Wall Street Journal, where she was White House correspondent. She has also been a regular panelist on the PBS series Washington Week and a contributor to NOW with Bill Moyers.

Martin has been honored by numerous organizations, including the Candace Award for Communications from The National Coalition of 100 Black Women, the Joan Barone Award for Excellence in Washington-based National Affairs/Public Policy Broadcasting from the Radio and Television Correspondents' Association and a 2002 Silver Gavel Award, given by the American Bar Association. Along with her Emmy award, she received three additional Emmy nominations, including one with WNYC's Robert Krulwich, at the time an ABC contributor as well, for an ABC News program examining children's racial attitudes. In 2019, Martin was elected into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences for outstanding achievement in journalism. She is the 2021 recipient of PMJA's 2021 Leo C. Lee Award.

A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Martin graduated cum laude from Radcliffe College at Harvard University in 1980 and earned a Master of Arts from the Wesley Theological Seminary in 2016.

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