FACES NATION MILITARY Celebrated singer-songwriter Sanders drops out Marine Corps begins Prine dies from coronavirus; of presidential race, issuing better-fitting, 7 essential tracks to stream clearing Biden’s path lighter body armor Page 17 Page 15 Page 3 Army football coach Monken stays upbeat in uncertain times » Back page stripes.com Volume 78, No. 254 ©SS 2020 THURSDAY, APRIL 9, 2020 50¢/Free to Deployed Areas MILITARY DOD mulls revival of ‘stop-loss’ amid crisis BY MISSY RYAN The Washington Post The Pentagon is considering new steps to retain uniformed service members, including the potential revival of the military’s controversial “stop-loss” policy, as the coronavirus crisis limits the arrival of new troops and dis- rupts its personnel pipeline. VIRUS OUTBREAK Officials said that implement- ing the stop-loss policy, employed during the George W. Bush ad- ministration as years of grueling combat in Iraq and Afghanistan strained the force, was among the measures being considered but was not the preferred option. Defense Department spokes- woman Lisa Lawrence said a range of options are under con- sideration but no formal recom- mendation or no decision had Modly been made. Lawrence said that stop-loss — which can retain enlisted troops beyond their planned departure date, delay officers’ retirement and lengthen reserve troops’ ac- tive-duty service — would “only be considered if absolutely neces- sary and is an alternative that we resigns will work diligently to avoid.” Officials said the department’s top official for personnel issues, Undersecretary for Personnel and Readiness Matthew Dono- Acting navy secretary steps down van, is developing draft guidance that if approved would allow the services to suspend planned pro- amid carrier captain controversy motions, retirements and other exits, and potentially to imple- ment the stop-loss policy. Page 3 It was not immediately clear what other steps might be taken first, but current and former of- Get the latest news on the virus outbreak ficials and outside experts said at stripes.com/coronavirus they could include allowing ser- vice members who already have put in their retirement papers to delay their exits, withdrawing ap- proval for planned exits from the LISA FERDINANDO / Department of Defense military or offering troops finan- cial incentives to stay longer. PAGE 2 F3HIJKLM •STARS AND STRIPES• Thursday, April 9, 2020 BUSINESS/WEATHER EXCHANGE RATES Military rates Switzerland (Franc)............................ 0.9701 Consumers get breaks, but layoffs keep coming Euro costs (April 9) ............................... $1.06 Thailand (Baht) ..................................... 32.76 Dollar buys (April 9) .........................€0.8962 Turkey (Lira) .........................................6.7814 British pound (April 9) .........................$1.21 Associated Press (Military exchange rates are those least April 27. leave Wednesday. Japanese yen (April 9) .......................106.00 available to customers at military banking South Korean won (April 9) ...........1,189.00 Honda will stop paying its Some companies have also rec- Commercial rates facilities in the country of issuance The pandemic is sapping tril- for Japan, South Korea, Germany, the roughly 14,400 production work- ognized that their customers are Bahrain (Dinar) ....................................0.3770 Netherlands and the United Kingdom. For lions from the economy and the British pound .....................................$1.2392 ers in Ohio, Indiana, Alabama, suffering and extended a hand. nonlocal currency exchange rates (i.e., ramifications for businesses, Canada (Dollar) ...................................1.4027 purchasing British pounds in Germany), Georgia and South Carolina as it Allstate is sending shelter-in- China (Yuan) ........................................ 7.0641 from banks to restaurants, is se- check with your local military banking Denmark (Krone) ................................6.8587 extends a production shutdown place paybacks to customers, with facility. Commercial rates are interbank vere. Few industries have been Egypt (Pound) ....................................15.7499 spared from mass layoffs. through May 1. Workers are get- most getting checks for 15% of Euro ........................................$1.0882/0.9189 rates provided for reference when buying ting health insurance and other their monthly premium in April Hong Kong (Dollar) .............................7.7521 currency. All figures are foreign currencies Recent personnel actions re- to one dollar, except for the British pound, benefits. and May. The insurer is sending Hungary (Forint) .................................329.38 ported by businesses include Israel (Shekel) .....................................3.5946 which is represented in dollars-to-pound, moves by BJ’s Restaurants, Thousands of Spirit AeroSys- out $600 million to customers, ac- Japan (Yen) ...........................................108.78 and the euro, which is dollars-to-euro.) tems employees are being fur- cording to a regulatory filing. Kuwait (Dinar) ..................................... 0.3110 INTEREST RATES which is laying off about 16,000 Norway (Krone) .................................10.2672 workers. loughed for three weeks without JPMorgan Chase has elimi- Philippines (Peso).................................50.50 Prime rate ................................................3.25 Nissan is furloughing about pay. Most employees at Spirit, nated minimum payment re- Poland (Zloty) ..........................................4.17 Discount rate ..........................................0.25 Saudi Arabia (Riyal) ...........................3.7573 Federal funds market rate ...................0.05 10,000 workers as it extends a the largest employer in Wichita, quirements on credit cards and i s Singapore (Dollar) ..............................1.4275 3-month bill ............................................. 0.14 production suspension until at Kan., will be placed on unpaid waiving late fees. South Korea (Won) ..........................1,218.81 30-year bond ...........................................1.43 WEATHER OUTLOOK THURSDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST THURSDAY IN EUROPE FRIDAY IN THE PACIFIC Misawa 44/37 Kabul 64/52 Seoul 52/35 Baghdad 86/65 Kandahar 71/48 Osan Tokyo Mildenhall/ Drawsko 52/34 54/41 Lakenheath Pomorskie Busan 64/41 56/47 53/43 Iwakuni 53/47 Kuwait Bahrain Zagan Sasebo City 82/78 Brussels 62/42 Guam 93/71 68/49 Ramstein 56/47 81/78 Lajes, 66/37 Riyadh Doha Azores Stuttgart Pápa 99/77 95/73 61/58 65/45 66/40 Aviano/ Vicenza 65/41 Naples 63/49 Okinawa Morón 70/67 67/57 Sigonella Rota 65/46 The weather is provided by the Djibouti Souda Bay American Forces Network Weather Center, 87/75 67/53 55/52 2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. T O D A Y IN STRIPES American Roundup ..... 16 Classified .................. 18 Comics ...................... 20 Crossword ................. 20 Faces ........................ 17 Opinion ..................... 19 Sports ...................21-24 Thursday, April 9, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• F3HIJKLM PAGE 3 MILITARY Acting Navy secretary resigns amid criticism BY CAITLIN M. KENNEY The Roosevelt has 230 positive in which [he] addressed the crew Stars and Stripes cases of the coronavirus as of of the USS Theodore Roosevelt Tuesday, according to the Navy. and made disparaging comments WASHINGTON — Acting Modly traveled to the Roosevelt about their former commander, Navy Secretary Thomas Modly — now in port in Guam — where Capt. Crozier.” resigned Tuesday amid mount- he disparaged the fired captain McPherson, a retired admi- ing criticism for his disparaging in a speech to the crew of nearly ral who served for 26 years, is a comments about the commander 5,000 sailors, according to a re- “smart, capable, and professional of the USS Theodore Roosevelt cording of his remarks leaked leader who will restore confi- who he fired over a leaked letter Monday. dence and stability in the Navy requesting aid for the coronavi- Modly initially defended his during these challenging times,” rus outbreak aboard the ship. words Monday, but hours later is- Esper said in his statement. Defense Secretary Mark Esper sued an apology saying he did not Modly had been the acting said Tuesday in a statement think Crozier is naïve or stupid. Navy secretary since November that he had accepted Modly’s “I believe, precisely because when former Navy Secretary resignation. he is not naive and stupid, that Richard Spencer was fired by “He resigned on his own ac- he sent his alarming email with Esper for loss of confidence due cord, putting the Navy and the the intention of getting it into the to his handling of the case of JOE GROMELSKI/Stars and Stripes sailors above self so that the USS public domain in an effort to draw Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Theodore Roosevelt, and the Then-acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly is seen at a public attention to the situation on Edward Gallagher, who was ac- Navy as an institution, can move hearing on Capitol Hill in December . his ship. I apologize for any con- cused of committing war crimes. forward,” Esper said. fusion this choice of words may Gallagher was acquitted of mur- Acting Army Undersecre- for a solution within regular Navy fit to lead our Navy through this have caused,” he said in his apol- der but found guilty of posing in tary James McPherson has been channels, Trump said. trying time. [Defense] Secretary ogy statement. a photo with the dead body of an appointed as the acting Navy