Staff Reports
Republican senators are still grappling with Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s ongoing hold on hundreds of military promotions due to a Pentagon abortion policy. Despite mounting pressure from Democrats, Tuberville remains steadfast, refusing to lift his blockade of approximately 450 military nominees. The policy in question provides funding for travel and expenses related to out-of-state abortions for service members. Tuberville, along with other opponents, argues that this amounts to taxpayer-funded abortions, which they believe is illegal. The Department of Defense, however, maintains that it is necessary to ensure the readiness of military personnel.
“We’re in virgin territory,” Tuberville told reporters after a meeting with his fellow GOP colleagues. “I don’t want to be hard-headed about this. I think we can get through this and do as much for both parties; for the unborn and for the military.” Tuberville presented four potential options to lift his holds in a memo distributed to Republicans, but Democrats and the Biden administration have rejected all of them.
Senate Republicans scramble for solution to Tuberville military blockade ahead of key votehttps://t.co/ffZ3GTjnLa pic.twitter.com/pdxTdQY1ta
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) November 8, 2023
These proposed solutions included the repeal of the Pentagon policy through the National Defense Authorization Act, private organizations funding abortion expenses, or holding individual floor votes on nominees. However, Democrats are now taking more aggressive action, with Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer planning to introduce legislation next week that would allow for a temporary rules change to confirm all the promotions. Democrats will need the support of at least nine Republicans to pass this legislation, putting pressure on GOP senators who have criticized Tuberville for allegedly jeopardizing national security.
“We hope that the Republicans will get Tuberville to back off, but we will get it done,” Schumer stated. “We will do everything we can to get it done as soon as possible.” It remains uncertain whether Democrats have enough votes, as some Republicans are considering the option. Pro-life groups have warned that any Republicans who align with Democrats on this issue will face political consequences and be labeled as pro-abortion.
Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri expressed doubt that Republicans are eager to vote on the matter, pointing a finger at Republican leadership for their lack of action. He questioned why it took 10 months for the first meeting on this subject to be convened by a rank-and-file member, Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin. “Leadership has been totally absent on this,” Hawley criticized. “It’s un-freaking-believable.”
Typically, promotions and nominees are confirmed without much controversy through unanimous consent. However, Tuberville’s hold has prevented this process, forcing a tallied vote. Democrats argue that the procedural hurdles required for such a vote would consume significant floor time. Tuberville hinted that he might allow some unanimous consent requests to be approved selectively, but it remained unclear what conditions would need to be met for him to greenlight such a move.
Last week, Tuberville blocked 61 unanimous consent requests made over a span of more than four hours by his fellow Republican senators, including Joni Ernst of Iowa and Dan Sullivan of Alaska, both of whom are veterans. “There’s going to have to be some give and take,” Tuberville acknowledged. “There was no give. It was all take.”
