Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who visited the carrier a day before the ship reached shore, announced the award to the 5,000 sailors aboard the Lincoln.
The Pentagon spent $2.85 million assembling tents at Guantanamo Bay that were never used to house detained noncitizens, a government watchdog reported.
Hegseth ordered the agencies to "mobilize every authorized asset, capability and partnership under your command" to defend U.S. election infrastructure.