The panel, an independent committee, will not provide naming recommendations for either ship, but will leave that up to the Navy, commissioners said during a media roundtable Tuesday. The committee was established by Congress in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2021 to provide recommendations to the Department of Defense regarding the renaming of Confederate markers on U.S. military installations. Renaming bases with Confederate nicknames has been a years-long process after first becoming a hot-button political issue in the final months of the Trump administration. At the time, then-President Donald Trump shot down the idea and vetoed the NDAA, accusing others of wanting to “drop those names.” In the waning days of his administration, Congress delivered the first and only veto override of his term, passing the legislation with overwhelming bipartisan support. The commission estimates the total cost of renaming all military bases, facilities and assets it has identified will cost about $62 million, according to a commission statement. It has made its recommendations in three parts, with the third and final part due to Congress by October 1. The first part of the report focused on renaming nine military bases and will cost more than $21 million, the commission said in its statement. The second part, which focuses on the US Military Academy and the US Naval Academy, will cost about $451,000. The third part of the report will be the most expensive, at about $41 million, the release said. It will recommend that the Secretary of Defense authorize the directors of “all defense entities and agencies to rename defense assets under their control that honor the Confederation or individuals who have volunteered for the Confederation,” the statement said. It will also recommend that the Secretary of Defense give the same authority to the secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to rename assets in their respective military branches that honor the Confederacy. The latest installment of the report also recommends removing the statue atop the monument at the Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. “All bronze elements on the monument should be deconstructed and removed, preferably leaving the granite plinth and foundation in place to minimize the risk of inadvertent disturbance of the graves,” the statement said.
