Episode 904: Thomas Modly on “Vectors Heroes, Villains, and Heartbreak on the Bridge of the U.S. Navy”

Newt's World

Gingrich 360

News, Politics

4.7 • 6.3K Ratings

🗓️ 26 October 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

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Summary

Newt talks with former Acting Secretary of the Navy, Thomas Modly about his book, “Vectors: Heroes, Villains, and Heartbreak on the Bridge of the U.S. Navy.” Modly discusses his tenure as Acting Secretary and insights into the challenges facing the U.S. Navy. The son of Eastern European immigrants, he shares how his parents' experiences helped shape his views on America and his decision to serve in the U.S. Navy. He reflects on the transformation of Hungary post-Iron Curtain and the importance of a strong U.S. military. Modly highlights the need for a national maritime strategy and addresses the Navy's current challenges, including shipbuilding and financial audits. He emphasizes the importance of effective leadership, communication, and agility in military operations. Modly also offers advice to Naval Academy graduates, urging them to focus on their commitment to the Constitution and the people they lead.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is an I-Heart podcast.
0:08.7	On this episode of NUCHWOL, my guest today served as the 33rd Undersecretary of the Navy from 2017 to 2019,
0:17.9	and for five months as the acting Secretary of the Navy. Throughout his tenure, Secretary Thomas
0:23.4	Modley focused on increasing agility and accountability throughout the department's workforce
0:28.4	and in its vital business operations, including information management that supported
0:34.0	the warfighting pattern for both sailors and Marines.
0:38.3	Secretary Moody is the son of Eastern European immigrants who escaped from behind the
0:42.5	Young Curtain after World War II.
0:44.5	He was raised in Cleveland, Ohio, before entering the Navy Academy, where he graduated with distinction.
0:50.3	He is the author of Vector's, Heroes, Villains, and Heartbreak on the Bridge of the U.S. Navy.
1:18.9	Music Tom, welcome, and thank you for joining me on New World.
1:21.6	Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My pleasure to be here. Thanks.
1:27.6	Your parents both fled oppression after World War II, your father from Hungary, your mother from Yugoslavia.
1:33.9	How did their experiences shape your own view of America and ultimately your decision to serve in the Navy?
1:35.1	Well, I think that's a great question.
1:37.1	It's fundamental to, I think, who I am in my perspectives about this country.
1:41.1	My father escaped from Hungary in 1948 when the Aaron Curtin was really establishing
1:46.3	itself in Hungary specifically. And obviously he experienced a lot of the horrors, particularly
1:51.8	in Budapest in the 1944-45 timeframe. He was being forced to enter the Communist Party. He was a law
1:59.0	student at the time. He was being forced to enter the Communist Party. He made the law student at the time. He was being forced to enter the Communist Party, and he made the decision that that was not something that he wanted
2:04.5	to do. So he left his entire family at age of 19 and escaped through the borders at Austria and
2:11.4	sort of made a deal with the United States that he would come to the U.S. but he had come here for a year,
	...

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