 In September 1944, King elevated his COMINCH chief of staff, Vice Admiral Richard S. Edwards, to the newly created position of "Deputy COMINCH-Deputy CNO," which inserted Edwards above Horne in the chain of command.Horne's unhappiness at the effective demotion resulted in a flurry of newspaper and radio criticism, which King tried to quell by issuing a press statement on October 4, 1944 that asserted "the duties now assigned to Vice Admiral Edwards do "not" constitute a demotion of Vice Admiral Horne or anyone else.