George Washington

Aug. 14 (UPI) — The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln is returning home after a lengthy, record-breaking deployment which some crew members’ families said caused their loved ones to attempt suicide, Navy officials announced Friday.

The vessel will be replaced in the Middle East by another aircraft carrier, President Donald Trump later told reporters, while dismissing concerns over the mental well-being of its sailors and Marines during its 266-day deployment.

The USS Abraham Lincoln “crushed their deployment and will return home soon as part of a planned rotation,” acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao said in a social media statement. “Details will come but let me be clear: the safety and security of our Sailors and Marines always comes first.”

The Lincoln’s time at sea “was extended because the mission demanded it. Deployments are hard,” he added, while criticizing what he called a “dishonest” portrayal of the crew’s health situation by media allegedly attempting to “paint our warriors as victims.”

Families of sailors serving on the ship have told reporters several crew members have tried to jump overboard or have been stopped from doing so in recent months as the Lincoln’s deployment reached record-setting proportions.

This prompted Senate Armed Services Committee member Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., to voice “serious concerns” about the length of the warship’s deployment as well as additional reports of supply shortages and contaminated water.

Cao on Friday admitted that “a small number of mental health cases were treated with no loss of life” and that meal plans “were adjusted” when fresh resupply was unavailable “without a single meal being missed.

“There is no question our young men and women have been pushed to their limits-but they have never broken,” he said. “They are rightly tired — but have never been out of the fight.

“However, it is clear, knowing the whole story, our force and their families are not victims. They are the epitome of American strength and resilience.”

The Abraham Lincoln will be replaced in the Middle East by the USS George Washington, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Trump, meanwhile confirmed another carrier is on its way, telling reporters that the Lincoln “is moving right now or very shortly and it’s being replaced with another very similar ship.”

He responded, “no, they’re not,” when asked if sailors’ families are concerned, and questioned whether the 266-day deployment was too long, he answered, “No, no, no. Not nearly long enough.”

Cheryl Reeve is relieved.

The longtime Minnesota Lynx coach tied WNBA legend Mike Thibault for most career wins on June 28. The two remained deadlocked, with the league-leading Lynx losing two straight games for the first time all season.

But the losing streak is over — and the WNBA has a new all-time winningest coach. Minnesota defeated the Connecticut Sun 86-80 on Wednesday night for Reeve’s historic 380th career victory.

“I am so glad this is over,” Reeve, 59, said during a postgame interview on USA Network.

Reeve was a four-year starter at La Salle from 1984-1988 and ranks fifth in career assists (420) for the Explorers. After serving as an assistant coach at her alma mater and George Washington, Reeve became head coach at Indiana State, going 63-72 over five seasons with winning records in each of the last two.

Jumping to the WNBA in 2001, Reeve was an assistant coach for the Charlotte Sting (two stints), Cleveland Rockers and Detroit Shock before becoming head coach of the Lynx in 2010. Since then, she has compiled a record of 380-196, won four WNBA titles (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017) and been named the league’s coach of the year four times (2011, 2015, 2020, 2024).

Reeve has missed the postseason only twice during her time with the Lynx, and her 49 playoff wins are the most in league history. She was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame last month.

“A milestone fit for the Hall of Famer,” the WNBA wrote in an X post congratulating Reeve.

While Reeve has compiled her total over 16-plus seasons, Thibault reached 379 victories over the course of 20 WNBA seasons, 10 with the Connecticut Sun (2003-2012) and 10 with the Washington Mystics (2013-2022). Currently the head coach of Belgium’s national women’s basketball team, Thibault was a three-time WNBA coach of the year and led Washington to the league title in 2019.

Reeve was head coach of the U.S. national team, with Thibault as her assistant coach, when it won gold at the 2022 World Cup in Australia and the 2024 Paris Olympics. Thibault’s son, former Mystics coach Eric Thibault, has been on Reeve’s staff in Minnesota as associatehead coach the past two seasons.

“Learned a lot from Mike through the years,” Reeve said after Wednesday’s game. “Tremendous coach and just so much respect that we’ve had for each other through the years. I know he’s happy for me. And somebody’s going to pass me and I’ll be happy for them too.”

Reeve was correct about Thibault’s feelings.

“Congrats, Cheryl, so much from all the Thibault family,” Thibault said in a video posted on X by the Lynx. “If anyone was going to break my record, I most wanted it to be you. Our friendship means a lot, but the job you’ve done as a coach and mentor in this league is appreciated by so many people. And I couldn’t be more proud to have you as a friend.”

Toronto’s Sandy Brondello is the closest active coach to Reeve’s mark. She ranks sixth all-time with 280 wins.

It’s the 250th birthday of the United States of America and how better to celebrate than with a big-screen hagiography of America’s first president, George Washington? “Young Washington” arrives in theaters just in time for the Fourth of July with a chiseled, hot young actor in the lead role and the sheen of a prestige HBO drama, though the result isn’t really big-screen spectacle or appointment television. It feels more like something to be watched on the AV rig in a middle school social studies class. At least there won’t be a quiz at the end.

But there could be, because the plot of “Young Washington” plays out with all the thrill of a textbook chapter. It takes place mostly around 1753-55, at the advent of the French and Indian War. We open in medias res when the 23-year-old Col. Washington (William Franklyn-Miller) lurches from a dysentery-riddled nap directly into battle in the Pennsylvania woods, his battalion on the back foot, surrounded by gore and gunpowder. Another officer describes how dire the situation is while George ponders saving his men and asks, “What could be worth the risk?” Washington steels his gaze and we cut to black. You can almost hear the eagles scream, guitars riff and engines rev.

“Young Washington” is produced and distributed by Angel Studios, the faith-based movie studio that churns out films based on true stories that either feature freak accidents, strange illnesses or, more recently, unique stories from the past in which faith in God is a factor. Apparently, our nation’s founding also falls under this umbrella.

The film is directed by Jon Erwin, one of the in-house Angel Studios mainstays, who also helmed “Jesus Revolution,” “I Still Believe” and “I Can Only Imagine.” Erwin gives the whole project a kind of gritty, visceral approach — very “Game of Thrones” in red coats. It’s violent, muddy, the contrast is high and too many drone shots soar over the forest treetops.

Though it opens with a bang, this 1755 battle framing device gives way to the George origin story, starting with his father’s death 12 years earlier, when the 11-year-old George is bereft that he’ll have to sacrifice his education in order to become a tenant farmer and provide for his family including his mother, Mary (Mary-Louise Parker, doing a bizarre accent).

His older half-brother Lawrence (John Foss) takes him under his wing and teaches him, and the young George grows into a smart, bright, ambitious young man, whose dreams of becoming a British officer are dashed because he doesn’t have formal education, a fortuitous marriage or his own land. But he’s bootstrapped himself into intelligence and with savvy networking and know-how, he becomes indispensable to the British, volunteering as a major to survey land and negotiate treaties with the Native tribes and French army. It’s all a bunch of politicking and petty disputes until it escalates into all-out war thanks to an ill-advised ambush.

Sir Ben Kingsley, Kelsey Grammar (who starred in “Jesus Revolution”) and Andy Serkis play the British officers who begrudgingly, at times, believe in George and his capabilities, though a lot of the film is about a young man getting rebuffed by snobbish British officers.

He’s the kind of character who always makes the noble choice, does and says what’s right, and sees everyone as equals (including enslaved African men and Native American allies). He inspires his brother and others that the world can change and takes inspiration from his mother, who encourages him to continue his path and do it as God’s servant.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t make for a character that’s in any way complex or interesting at all. Franklyn-Miller is certainly pretty, serving as a fine face for this story, but the screenplay (by Erwin, Diederik Hoogstraten and Tom Provost) flattens his character into a basic cookie-cutter hero. Audiences, including the middle school social studies students, deserve better and more nuanced stories about this country and the values it was built upon.

“Young Washington” is propaganda in the form of a history lesson wrapped in a summer blockbuster. If only it were even slightly entertaining — maybe they’ll tackle that in the inevitable sequel.