President Donald Trump has switched nominees for the post of Maritime Administrator, withdrawing the nomination of Capt. Brent Sadler (USN, ret’d) and substituting Capt. Stephen Carmel, a former Maersk Line Ltd. executive with decades of commercial maritime experience. No formal announcement was made for the change; MARAD has been without a confirmed leader since former administrator Adm. Ann Phillips’ resignation in mid-January.
“Stephen Carmel is solid – bottom line the nation needs leadership in MARAD ASAP. I have known Stephen for years and support him,” said Capt. Sadler in a brief statement acknowledging the change.
Former nominee Capt. Sadler is a Navy veteran who currently works as a researcher with the conservative Heritage Foundation. He is an engineer by training and a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, with multiple Indo-Pacific submarine tours on his resume. Among other accomplishments, Sadler helped pass a program for maritime security training for Southeast Asian partners in FY2016, and helped direct $12 billion in defense funding to the Asia-Pacific under the “rebalance” initiative in 2013-15.
New nominee Capt. Stephen Carmel is a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and a former senior vice president at Maersk Line Ltd. (MLL), one of the most prominent U.S.-flag carriers in the Maritime Security Program (MSP). He holds a master unlimited license, and he previously sailed for Military Sealift Command and Maritime Overseas Corporation, securing his first command at the young age of 26. He is also a certified accountant and holds an MA in Economics and an MBA in International Finance from Old Dominion University, according to his biography for the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Board of Visitors. He has also served on the CNO Executive Panel, Marine Board at the National Academies, and the Naval Studies Board.
Carmel’s nomination received swift support from the Dredging Contractors of America. In a brief endorsement, DCA CEO William Doyle said that “Steve knows maritime, he knows the American Flag, and he sailed commercially in the U.S. Merchant Marine.”
The head of the Maritime Administration holds responsibility for the Ready Reserve fleet, the Maritime Security Program, the Tanker Security Program, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and a range of grant and R&D programs supporting commercial maritime. The next appointee will inherit an agency primed and ready for renewal: High turnover and high retirement eligibility have left MARAD with scores of vacant positions. As of last fall, the agency had openings for 12 percent of all authorized positions, according to GAO – before the reduction in force initiatives under the current administration began.
