(CNSNews.com) - Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) is holding up the promotions of over 150 military generals and flag officers over the Defense Department’s abortion policy, which provides travel expenses and paid leave for servicemembers and their dependents to get abortions.
Tuberville’s actions “could absolutely” affect U.S. military readiness around the world, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday.
“So, I think you all know he’s blocking Defense Department nominations, including the promotions of over 160 senior military leaders — admirals and generals — and nominees for top acquisition and sustainment positions, civilian positions at DOD right at a time when budget has gone forward, and you got the top leaders of the Defense Department testifying on this budget — biggest budget ever for DOD — and at a time when we are still trying to support Ukraine while we’re still facing challenges in the Indo-Pacific — a wide range of challenges,” Kirby said.
“It’s not just all about China. I mean, look at what North Korea has done in recent days, and when you hold these promotions up, you — there is, as Secretary Austin said, a real ripple effect downstream, because now people can’t move on to the next job, and they can’t leave the one that they’re in, and they can’t assume these new jobs of responsibility, and it absolutely — if it goes on too long, it could absolutely have an effect on U.S. military readiness around the world,” he said.
“We noticed that there were some Senate Republicans yesterday who urged Senator Tuberville to drop these blocks themselves, and we certainly welcome that and agree with them,” Kirby said.
“One senator — just one single senator, my colleague from Alabama, Sen. Tuberville — is blocking all general and flag officer confirmations, taking our military, our national security, our safety hostage,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday.
“For years — years and years and years — both parties have worked together to quickly confirm the routine promotions of generals and flag officers without partisan bickering,” Schumer said.
“Our general to NATO, he’s one of the people he’s blocking at a time when we have a war with Putin in Ukraine,” he said. “It’s just horrible what he is doing.”
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said her concern is “holding the promotions of members of the military as opposed to political nominees.”
“They’re not making the policy, and at a time when we’re having recruitment and retention problems in our military, I worry about the signal that that would send, but it’s primarily — they’re not the policymakers,” Collins said.