Published 6 October 2026 · Last updated 6 October 2026
On 30 September 2026, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) introduced legislation to stop the Navy from removing Doris Miller’s name from the future aircraft carrier CVN-81. The ship’s official name remains USS Doris Miller. No renaming has been announced.
What the bills would do
Booker introduced three related bills, all referred to the Senate Armed Services Committee:
- S. 5680 would prohibit federal funds from being used to rename, redesignate, or otherwise change the name of CVN-81 from USS Doris Miller.
- S. 5679 would bar naming or renaming any Navy ship for a sitting president or vice president. This would be a general rule, not one limited to this ship.
- S. 5678 would require the Secretary of the Navy to establish a formal ship-naming process, with more transparency to Congress.
“Doris Miller didn’t wait for permission to be a hero,” Booker said in a statement.
Why now
On 20 August 2026, CNN reported that Navy leadership was internally weighing a new name for the carrier, with President Trump discussed as a possibility. The same reporting said the Navy had stopped calling the ship USS Doris Miller internally and was using only its hull number. NBC News later reported the same discussions, citing two U.S. officials. The administration has not publicly made a case for a name change.
The Navy announced the name in January 2020, during President Trump’s first term.
The Medal of Honor question
According to NBC News, two officials said one way to justify a name change would be to award Miller the Medal of Honor. Aircraft carriers are typically named for presidents, and destroyers often honor Medal of Honor recipients. Military.com notes that upgrading Miller’s award could open the way to moving his name to a different type of ship. NBC also reported that Miller is under consideration for the medal, but the White House has not approved it.
Legislation to award Miller the Medal of Honor, H.R. 2335 (Rep. Kweisi Mfume), has been pending in the House Armed Services Committee since 25 March 2025. Whether Miller earned the Medal of Honor is a question about what he did on 7 December 1941. Whether his name stays on CVN-81 is a separate decision, and the two should be judged separately. More on Miller’s awards: Navy Cross and Medal of Honor.
What the record says
Coverage of the bills has repeated several familiar claims about Miller’s actions at Pearl Harbor. His courage that morning is not in dispute, and the Navy recognized it in writing. The documents are more specific than the retellings:
- Aircraft downed: The Secretary of the Navy’s commendation of 30 March 1942 says Miller “later manned and operated a machine gun until ordered to leave the bridge.” It names no aircraft and claims no hits, and the Navy never officially credited him with downing a plane. See The Machine Gun.
- “Never trained”: This phrase traces to a wire story from 22 December 1941. Miller held no gunner’s rating, but the full picture is more complicated. See Myths and Misconceptions.
- Wounded sailors: The commendation says he helped move his mortally wounded captain “to a place of greater safety.” See December 7, 1941.
Where it stands
- The bills were referred to a committee controlled by the president’s party and have not advanced.
- Any decision on the carrier’s name rests with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao.
- CVN-81 is under construction at Newport News, Virginia. It has not launched, and delivery is scheduled for February 2034. See The Ships.
We will update this post as the bills move or the Navy makes an announcement.
Sources
- Congress.gov, S. 5680, 119th Congress
- Congress.gov, S. 5679, 119th Congress
- Congress.gov, S. 5678, 119th Congress
- Military.com, Bill Would Block Navy From Replacing Carrier’s Doris Miller Name for Trump’s, 5 Oct 2026
- NBC News, New legislation aims to block renaming aircraft carrier after Trump, Oct 2026
- CNN, Navy weighs renaming carrier slated to honor Black war hero, 20 Aug 2026
- Congress.gov, H.R. 2335, 119th Congress
- Earlier coverage on this site: CVN-81 and the Doris Miller name: what’s reported, what’s confirmed