The Trump administration is facing criticism over reports that a US Navy aircraft carrier set to honor a Black war hero may, instead, be named after Donald Trump, reports infohub.kz.
The US Navy had previously announced that the carrier under construction would be called the USS Doris Miller, in tribute to a sailor celebrated for his heroism during the attack on Pearl Harbor in the Second World War. However, CNN reported, citing sources familiar with internal discussions, that the Navy is now working to rename the carrier. Two of those sources said there have been conversations about renaming it to honor Trump.
Miller, a Navy cook, reportedly shot down four to six Japanese bombers at Pearl Harbor in 1941, despite no formal training on the weapons system he used. He died at sea in 1943, with two-thirds of the crew lost to a Japanese torpedo aboard the Liscome Bay. Cuba Gooding Jr portrayed him in the 2001 film Pearl Harbor.
Miller was awarded the Navy Cross for his actions at Pearl Harbor. The citation reads: “While at the side of his Captain on the bridge of the battleship U.S.S. WEST VIRGINIA, Mess Attendant First Class Doris Miller, despite enemy strafing and bombing and in the face of a serious fire, assisted in moving his Captain, who had been mortally wounded, to a place of greater safety, and later manned and operated a machine gun directed at enemy Japanese attacking aircraft until ordered to leave the bridge.”
His family has long advocated for his award to be upgraded to a Medal of Honor. No carrier in the US Navy has ever been named for a sitting president, and reports of the plan to name this one after Trump prompted criticism.
Mark Kelly, a Democratic US senator of Arizona and a retired Navy officer, wrote on X: “Dorie Miller’s bravery at Pearl Harbor is legendary and resulted in him being awarded the Navy Cross. This aircraft carrier shouldn’t be renamed at all, let alone for Donald Trump, who has denigrated servicemembers like Dorie Miller who have paid the ultimate price.”