{"id":2646204,"date":"2026-08-17T19:02:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T23:02:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/uss-lincoln-turmoil-underscores-republicans-iran-vulnerabilities\/"},"modified":"2026-08-17T19:07:59","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T23:07:59","slug":"uss-lincoln-turmoil-underscores-republicans-iran-vulnerabilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/uss-lincoln-turmoil-underscores-republicans-iran-vulnerabilities\/","title":{"rendered":"USS Lincoln turmoil underscores Republicans&#8217; Iran vulnerabilities"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fuss-lincoln-turmoil-underscores-republicans-iran-vulnerabilities%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2646204&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the challenging conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln amid ongoing military operations, which have become a political point in the U.S. midterm election debates. Sailors on the ship are experiencing mental health crises due to prolonged sea deployment, limited supplies, and poor living conditions, with some even attempting to abandon ship. Democrats criticize the situation as a failure of leadership under President Trump and his administration, citing concerns over troop welfare and comparing current issues to previous administration policies. Republican figures acknowledge the situation&#8217;s impact on the economy, such as rising gas prices caused by conflicts involving Iran, but also praise the efforts to support military readiness. Trump supporters defend the ship\u2019s conditions, dismissing reports of mismanagement as &#8220;fake news,&#8221; with Trump himself emphasizing that conditions are better than reported and highlighting his efforts to strengthen the military. The political debate continues around the war&#8217;s management and its implications ahead of the midterms.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The conditions on board the<em> USS Abraham Lincoln<\/em> have given Democrats a new attack line to criticize Republicans as the six-month war appears to have no end in sight with the midterm elections looming.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reports from last week indicated that sailors aboard the <em>Lincoln<\/em>, which was deployed to the Middle East before the war began, are suffering mental health crises in the face of nine months at sea, dwindling rations, and subpar living conditions. Multiple sailors have reportedly sought to abandon ship in the middle of the Arabian Sea.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4690266\/democrats-republicans-midterms-iran-uss-lincoln-reports-lacking-food-veterans-input\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>USS Lincoln turmoil underscores Republicans\u2019 Iran vulnerabilities<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/defense\/4689694\/trump-iran-mou-60-day-ceasefire-expires-extention-unlikely\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump indicates US won\u2019t seek memorandum of understanding extension following conclusion of 60-day ceasefire<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4690392\/trump-approval-rating-iran-war-poll\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump approval sinks to new low as voters fear prolonged Iran war: Poll<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">President Donald Trump\u2019s supporters maintain that wartime demands increase for service members, especially while fighting an existential threat, such as the possibility of Iran, the world\u2019s largest state-sponsor of terrorism, obtaining a nuclear weapon.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Trump administration last week mobilized the <em>USS George Washington <\/em>to relieve the <em>USS Lincoln<\/em> last week, but it will take an estimated three weeks for the entire naval force to reach the Middle East from the Pacific Ocean.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The development has given Democrats another avenue to use the war as a political cudgel, as it\u2019s already contributed to rising prices and has claimed the lives of 18 service members.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats are claiming the <em>Lincoln<\/em> is representative of failures from the president, War Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Republican lawmakers they say are complicit in Trump\u2019s war.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gov. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/wes-moore\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"3000\">Wes Moore<\/a> (D-MD), a U.S. Army veteran, took issue with both the <em>Lincoln\u2019s<\/em> conditions and the president\u2019s response during a Sunday interview with CNN.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt should piss off all of us,\u201d he said. \u201cI would have hoped that since he\u2019s never been forward deployed, since he\u2019s never put on the uniform and sacrificed for this country, that he would have more compassion for the people who are willing to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Richard Ojeda, an Army veteran and the Democratic nominee challenging National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC) in North Carolina\u2019s 9th Congressional District, used the <em>Lincoln<\/em> situation to attack Republicans during a Monday interview with the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He claimed that Trump\u2019s comments are \u201ca slap in the face to anybody who\u2019s ever served in this military.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s a shame that now instead of doing the right thing and saying, \u2018Well, you know, we really need to figure out how we can get these soldiers relief.\u2019 Instead of saying that, now they\u2019re going out there and they\u2019re trying to vilify the soldiers,\u201d Ojeda said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Republicans have not suggested that the <em>Lincoln<\/em> could dampen their chances ahead of November, but some top GOP voices are publicly suggesting concerns about the political ramifications of the war.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Campaigning for Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-VA) on Monday, House Speaker Mike Johnson conceded that the \u201cIran conflict has been the cause, of course, of gas prices going up,\u201d but said that he is \u201cgrateful\u201d for the work the Trump administration is doing to combat rising prices at the pump.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis situation in Iran is causing repercussions like you can\u2019t imagine,\u201d Sen. Jim Justice (R-WV) said. \u201cAnd I\u2019m a real believer that once we decided to go, we gotta win.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The White House has sought to downplay reporting on the <em>Lincoln<\/em>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-26\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-5\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAfter four years of weakness and failure under Joe Biden, President Trump rightfully restored a focus on readiness, lethality, and supporting our warfighters at the Pentagon \u2013 including by rebuilding America\u2019s long-neglected shipbuilding industry,\u201d White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>. \u201cThe president cares about our troops more than anyone, and he is ensuring our brave servicemembers have all the resources they need to be successful as the United States Military continues to economically strangle the Iranian regime.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump told reporters last week that family members of the sailors on board are mistaken about the conditions and that the deployment has gone on \u201cnot nearly long enough.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Monday, during an Oval Office spray, he called CNN\u2019s original report on the <em>Lincoln\u2019s<\/em> conditions \u201cfake.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4688641\/trumpworld-karoline-leavitt-replacement-woman\/\"><strong>THE TWO REASONS TRUMPWORLD THINKS LEAVITT\u2019S REPLACEMENT WILL BE A WOMAN<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI was at a group meeting and an admiral came up to see me over the weekend, and it was at a big group, and he happened to be an admiral, retired,\u201d the president said. \u201cHe said, \u2018I\u2019ve been on ships that are out there much longer than that, sir. And I know people on the <em>Lincoln<\/em>. They say it\u2019s beautifully maintained and beautifully taken care of.\u2019 And other people went out, and they found out to be true. It was fake news reporting from CNN.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>USS Lincoln conditions fuel Dems&#8217; attack on GOP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2646205,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26225614336401_27bfba.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[3823,4505,3756,84261],"class_list":["post-2646204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-iran","tag-military","tag-republicans","tag-uss-lincoln"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26225614336401_27bfba.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646204","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2646204"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646204\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2646207,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646204\/revisions\/2646207"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2646205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2646204"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2646204"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2646204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}