# What warships will be named after Clinton, Bush and Obama? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 2, 2016, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985 "2016-01-02T07:33:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/1 "2016-01-02T07:33:27Z")
All aircraft carriers, you think? ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/2 "2016-01-02T07:54:07Z")
Quite probably none. Traditionally, ships that are named after people are named after people who have been in the Navy - or at least the Secretary of the Navy. Neither Clinton nor Obama were in the military, and Bush Jr was in the Texas Air National Guard. It’s happened that a carrier was named after someone not associated with the Navy (other than being Commander in Chief, ie President), but the only one I can think of is the USS Ronald Reagan. That can be hand-waved, if you’re feeling generous, due to the massive buildup of the Navy during his term. ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/3 "2016-01-02T08:03:59Z")
Too late to edit. * * * ETA: A bit more research shows the _Carl Vinson_ and the _Harry S. Truman_, also exceptions to the rule. Carl Vinson was a Senator who was quite the proponent of naval power, I haven’t quite figured out why Truman got a ship named after him. Probably, somebody powerful from Missouri was involved. Personally, I’d rather go with tradition, but what the hell. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/4 "2016-01-02T08:10:07Z")
I’m assuming the USNS Bob Hope does not count? It’s a cargo ship. ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/5 "2016-01-02T08:33:43Z")
Heh. It’s not as clear as all that, really…or as clear as I thought. :smack: [US ship naming conventions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_ship_naming_conventions) over on Wiki gives the general “rules”, but they’re kinda like spelling rules. In other words, very general guidelines, with lots of exceptions. Anyway, if any ship gets named after the the last three presidents, they’d be aircraft carriers, I suppose, but I doubt there’ll be much push to name any ships after either Clinton or Obama - and Bush Jr strikes me as being almost as unlikely, though I admit I can’t put my finger on why. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/6 "2016-01-02T15:07:28Z")
> [@galen\_ubal](#): > > It’s happened that a carrier was named after someone not associated with the Navy (other than being Commander in Chief, ie President), but the only one I can think of is the USS Ronald Reagan. And USS John C. Stennis, USS Carl Vinson, USS George Washington, USS Abraham Lincoln, USS Harry S. Truman, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower today. USS Langley, USS Franklin, and USS Franklin D. Roosevelt earlier. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/7 "2016-01-02T15:23:39Z")
Laundry ships? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/8 "2016-01-02T15:44:05Z")
Clinton gets a swingers cruise ship. The Titanic gets renamed the George W. Bush. Obama gets the good ship Hope. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/9 "2016-01-02T15:47:19Z")
You shouldn’t ever name something after someone who’s still alive (yes, I know that the Cult of Reagan didn’t follow this rule). Clinton, Bush, and Obama probably all have a couple of decades yet on them or so. By that time, we might not even be using carriers. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/10 "2016-01-02T16:53:19Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > You shouldn’t ever name something after someone who’s still alive (yes, I know that the Cult of Reagan didn’t follow this rule). Last time I checked GHWB is still alive and also has a carrier named after him. IMHO the USS Clinton should be a submarine (long hard and full of seamen), the USS Obama should be a destroyer that launches hunter killer drones and the USS Bush Junior should be Tug Boat that sinks shortly after its commissioned without leaving the harbour it was built in 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/11 "2016-01-02T19:04:31Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > You shouldn’t ever name something after someone who’s still alive (yes, I know that the Cult of Reagan didn’t follow this rule). Clinton, Bush, and Obama probably all have a couple of decades yet on them or so. By that time, we might not even be using carriers. Last I checked Jimmy Carter is still alive. The USS Jimmy Carter was launched in 2004. It’s a submarine since he served on subs. Was the Cult of Carter responsible? ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/12 "2016-01-02T20:12:56Z")
Obama should clearly get an oiler. So that after the ship provides the needed boost to other ships, the sailors can say, “Thanks, OBAMA!” ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/13 "2016-01-02T20:18:30Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > Last time I checked GHWB is still alive and also has a carrier named after him. Not only that, but he was present at the commissioning ceremony (I have this recorded on DVD somewhere), and as a surprise, after the flyover of jets at the end, they had a flyover of an Avenger torpedo bomber. As for the OP, they might name one of the Ford-class carriers (assuming they ever get around to getting the bugs on the Gerald Ford fixed so they can commission it; I think it was supposed to be in early February, but the latest I heard is, it won’t even be delivered (i.e. seaworthy) until at least March) after Obama, more for the “see, we can name carriers after black people, too” factor than anything else, although the next two after Ford already have names penciled in (John F. Kennedy and Enterprise). I don’t see GWB getting a ship as it might cause confusion with the GHWB. [As for the USS Bill Clinton…](http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1510710/posts); however, note that the text says it is in Vancouver, but either somebody moved Sutro Tower 1000 miles or so north, or that’s actually San Francisco Bay. ---
**Author:** ![magnusblitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@magnusblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnusblitz)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/14 "2016-01-02T20:31:23Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > And USS John C. Stennis, USS Carl Vinson, USS George Washington, USS Abraham Lincoln, USS Harry S. Truman, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower today. USS Langley, USS Franklin, and USS Franklin D. Roosevelt earlier. FDR was the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for seven years. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/15 "2016-01-02T22:02:22Z")
In the particular cases of GHWBush and Gerald Ford they both served aboard carriers in WW2 and would be the most meriting to have their name given to one; similarly Jimmy Carter and a nuke sub. LBJ and Nixon both served as staff officers in the WW2 Navy but only now is a Zumwalt-class stealth destroyer being planned with Johnson’s name on it; as for Dick, well, let’s say nobody’s lobbying too effectively for him to get even a landing boat. Reagan is an interesting intersection of President with “politician who advocated or funded a naval build-up” like Vinson and Stennis who apparently were the ones who broke the requirement to not assign names of still living people. [A list of presidents up to Clinton and their named vessels if any](http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ship/names-presidents.htm) for some reason in order of their CSPAN rank rather than their term; with a short history at the end of how the namings came and went. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/16 "2016-01-02T22:15:13Z")
Starships. Gotta be starships. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2016, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/17 "2016-01-02T22:18:37Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > In the particular cases of GHWBush and Gerald Ford they both served aboard carriers in WW2 and would be the most meriting to have their name given to one; Ford is actually getting his own class of carriers. Since they normally give the name of US presidents to aircraft carriers, I assume it would be one of the new Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) class carriers entering service. Since they have already named the next two ships in the class John F Kennedy (CVN-79) and Enterprise (CVN-80) their names might be given to the next three. USS Bill Clinton (CVN-81) would serve during a time of unprecedented peace and prosperity, but will likely have a number of controversies surrounding the behavior of the officers and crew. USS George W Bush (CVN-82) will be plagued with frequent maintenance problems and cost overruns, and will eventually blunder into the longest war in US history. The USS Barack Obama (CVN-83) will ultimately replace the George W Bush, inheriting many of it’s broken systems and faulty parts. While it won’t “win” the wars started by it’s predecessor, it will slowly be able to fight them to enough of a standstill that most people can forget about them. The Admiral who takes command of this ship can expect to spend most of his time arguing with the other captains of his battlegroup over everything from which direction they should sail in to which shipyard the parts on the Obama actually came from. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/18 "2016-01-03T01:30:30Z")
We have a destroyer named after a British prime minister with a Royal Navy officer permanently attached to it. > **[USS Winston S. Churchill](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Winston_S._Churchill)** > > USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer of the United States Navy. She is named after Sir Winston Churchill, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. This ship is the 31st destroyer of her class. Winston S. Churchill was the 18th ship of this class to be built at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, and construction began on 7 May 1998. She was launched and christened on 17 April 1999. On 10 March 2001, she was commissioned during a ceremony at Town Point Park in No... So maybe the USS Barack H Obama will have a Kenyan witch doctor in its sick bay. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/19 "2016-01-03T01:34:50Z")
Dubya should have a hospital ship named after him. “Mission: Accomplished” ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985/20 "2016-01-03T01:42:16Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > IMHO the USS Clinton should be a submarine (long hard and full of seamen), Shouldn’t the [del]boat that goes down[/del] submarine for Clinton be named the USS Lewinsky? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-warships-will-be-named-after-clinton-bush-and-obama/741985.md?page=2)