The Navy took pains to make sure Trump didn't notice the U.S.S. John McCain during his Japan trip, @wsj reports https://t.co/a7CKwJEnPl pic.twitter.com/efIpz66bdm
— Alex Fitzpatrick (@AlexJamesFitz) May 29, 2019
Can’t find it now, but someone on twitter quipped, It’s never a good thing when the President’s advance team brings a tarp to a battleship…
Per the Washington Post, “White House wanted USS John S. McCain obscured during Trump’s Japan visit”:
… A senior Navy official confirmed he was aware someone at the White House sent a message to service officials in the Pacific requesting that the USS John McCain be kept out of the picture while the president was there. That led to photographs taken Friday of a tarp obscuring the McCain name, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.
When senior Navy officials grasped what was happening, they directed Navy personnel who were present to stop, the senior official said. The tarp was removed on Saturday, before Trump’s visit, he added.
The White House request was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
The crew of the McCain also was not invited to Trump’s visit, which occurred on the USS Wasp. But a Navy official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said it was because the crew was released from duty for the long holiday weekend, along with sailors from another ship, the USS Stethem.
A senior White House official also confirmed that they did not want the destroyer with the McCain name seen in photographs. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said the president was not involved in the planning, but the request was made to keep Trump from being upset during the visit…
Some poor bastid is gonna end up in the barrel because their superiors were terrified of offending the delicate sensibilities of a draft-dodging braggart.
Brought to you by the people who berate kneeling NFL players for “disrespecting the troops.” https://t.co/ArCtOQ1Dk7
— Rita Konaev (@RitaKonaev) May 30, 2019
Even Trump knows this is a God-awful look. it will be ironic if he goes ballistic on his staff for taking steps to avoid him going ballistic. pic.twitter.com/jWgM6PJcbI
— Daniel W. Drezner (@dandrezner) May 30, 2019
When they run the government like a business. pic.twitter.com/QhndSniQD2
— Eric Columbus (@EricColumbus) May 30, 2019