In sci.military.naval Louis V. Spielman twisted the electrons to say:
There is no greater waste of money than a SECOND RATE NAVY.

Depends upon how you're getting to "second rate" - do you mean overall or
merely in comparison to the perceived threat level? After all, I think
it's fair to say that if you mean overall then the USN is "first rate"
and no-one else manages better than "second rate"[1].

Eg: I reckon it's pretty impossible to imagine the armed forces of the
UK successfully repelling a full-blown assault by the US (well, without
saying to the president "we have Trident, which cities won't the US
miss?" grins), however I also think it's unlikely that the US will be
attempting to invade the UK in the near future!

[1] And quite a lot don't even manage that!
--
These opinions might not even be mine ...
Let alone connected with my employer ...