SECNAV Del Toro As-Written Remarks at the SSN 812 Naming

Introduction/Thank You

Good morning, everyone!

It is an honor to be with you here today.

Mayor Scott, thank you for joining us and for your years of public service to the City of Baltimore.

Thank you, Senator Cardin, for your partnership and support of our service men and women and their families in our Navy and Marine Corps.

Deputy Secretary of Defense Hicks, ma'am, it is an honor to have you here today. Thank you for your leadership of the Department of Defense and fierce advocacy of our service members and DOD civilians.

Admiral Holland, thank you for your presence and for your career of service to the Navy Submarine Force.

To all of our service members, distinguished guests and visitors-welcome and thank you for joining us.

City of Baltimore

It is wonderful to be here in Baltimore, Maryland-a city rich in both American and naval history.

And not only because when I was a Midshipman at the United States Naval Academy, my friends and I would come up to Baltimore to escape Annapolis every once in a while!

The city of Baltimore maintains a strong connection with our maritime services and is a critical enabler of our National Maritime Statecraft.

Baltimore boasts a storied shipbuilding history, famously the originator of the "Baltimore Clipper," an eighteenth-century merchant sailing vessel known for its speed.

In the early days of our Nation, the city earned a reputation as the center of commerce, and the Port of Baltimore remains one of the busiest in the Nation today.

And in the wake of tragedy, we come together here in Baltimore.

Following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, the Navy worked with Key Bridge Response Unified Command which included the Army Corps of Engineers, Coast Guard, Maryland Department of the Environment, Maryland Transportation Authority, Maryland State Police, and Synergy Marine.

NAVSEA's Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving led critical efforts to support the clearance of the Port of Baltimore's Fort McHenry Federal Channel.

We mourn those we lost on March 26, 2024. Please join me in a moment of silence to honor the memory of the six souls taken too soon from us that day.

The ship we are on today-USS Constellation-was named after and includes materials from one of our Navy's six founding frigates, which was built here in Baltimore.

And it was not far from here that during the Battle of Baltimore in 1814, Francis Scott Key penned the immortal words to "The Star-Spangled Banner," our national anthem.

Baltimore has deep roots with our Nation's Navy and boasts one Continental Navy ship and five previous Navy vessels named for the city including:

a brigantine,

a converted merchant ship which served in the Quasi-War against France,

a sidewheel steamer which served in the Civil War,

a cruiser which fought in the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War and then later in the First World War,

a Baltimore-class cruiser which earned nine battle stars during the Second World War, and

most recently, a Los Angeles-class nuclear attack submarine, SSN 704, which participated in undersea operations against the Soviet Union and decommissioned on July 10, 1998.

Ship Naming

Baltimore shaped America's formative years-a strategic location since its very origins and an integral part of the Nation's thriving shipping and shipbuilding industries.

Baltimore's external influence is far reaching-affecting American culture, food, sports, and commerce.

And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my honor and privilege to announce the name of the next Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarine, SSN EIGHT-TWELVE, USS Baltimore.

Make ready!

Sponsor Introduction

I am also honored to announce that the ship sponsor of the future USS Baltimore is Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks.

The ship's sponsor fills a critical role throughout the life of a warship, serving as the bond between the ship, her crew, and the nation they serve.

And I can think of no one more fitting to take on this vital role-no one with more resilience and grit and whose spirit embodies that of Baltimore-than Deputy Secretary Hicks.

Since its very founding, the city of Baltimore has introduced new ideas, transforming the Nation and indeed the world.

And in the Department of Defense, Deputy Secretary Hicks has championed innovation, modernization, and other strategic initiatives aimed at increasing our military's adaptability, efficiency, and capabilities in the face of emerging global challenges.

Thank you, ma'am, for your lifelong commitment to our Navy, to our service men and women, and to the United States of America.

You, like the service members who will serve on this proud ship and the city it will be named after, represent the absolute best this country has to offer.

Closing/Mayor Scott Introduction

In closing, our Navy and Marine Corps Team is indeed the most powerful, capable, and lethal Force this world has ever seen.

And I know that we have the best ships, submarines, aircraft, equipment, and weapons.

But a strong Navy and Marine Corps is about more than just acquiring advanced systems and platforms.

Our people are the foundation of this Department-they ensure that America remains the greatest nation in the world and that we remain the land of the free.

We have the strongest Navy and Marine Corps in the world because of the people onboard ships like the future USS Baltimore.

May God bless you and our service men and women stationed all around the globe.

And now, I would like to introduce a community leader, public servant, and lifelong resident of Baltimore City who at the age of twenty-seven was one of the youngest people ever elected to the Baltimore City Council, and at the age of thirty-six was the youngest mayor in Baltimore's history.

Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome the 52nd Mayor of Baltimore, Mayor Brandon Scott.

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