We urge you to reject this plan and ensure that CVN-81 bears the name USS Doris Miller.
Mark DeSaulnier will oppose renaming CVN-81, the USS Doris Miller, in honor of President Trump and will support keeping the ship named for Doris Miller.
Occurrences
Evidence
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Rep. Wesley Bell's official House release says Mark DeSaulnier was among 73 House members signing a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao urging them to reject any effort to rename the future USS Doris Miller and ensure CVN-81 keeps the USS Doris Miller name.
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Stars and Stripes reported that CNN and NBC had described internal administration discussions about changing CVN-81's name, possibly to honor President Trump, while the White House and Pentagon had not issued statements and a Navy spokesman said the service had nothing to announce at that time.
Assessments
The promise was framed as DeSaulnier taking an opposition/support position, not guaranteeing final Navy control of the ship name. During his current House term, he materially fulfilled that commitment by joining an official congressional letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao urging rejection of any CVN-81 renaming and retention of the USS Doris Miller name. The underlying Navy decision remained unresolved as of August 29, 2026, but that does not defeat fulfillment of this action-oriented promise.