Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, wants the upcoming Senate deliberations on the National Defense Authorization Act to focus on military readiness, not social issues.

The Senate is expected this week to debate the NDAA, which sets policy for the Pentagon and authorizes $886 billion in spending for national defense for fiscal 2024, though the version the House passed last week contained a number of partisan provisions that garnered overwhelming support from Republicans and near-unanimous dissent from Democrats.

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House Republicans voted to include provisions in their version of the bill ending the Pentagon's diversity and inclusion efforts, and the department's current policies regarding abortion and trans service members. But Senate Democrats, who are in the majority, all but certainly won't include many of those same amendments.

The Mississippi Republican supports their efforts to change the department's diversity and inclusion efforts, though he wants the senate to "stay away" from other social issues.

“Well, I'm very comfortable with what the House has done there," Wicker told the Washington Examiner. "You'll see if Chairman [Jack] Reed wants to stay away from things like that and simply leave it as an issue for the conference. I hope to concentrate on readiness and getting our brave men and women the tools they need to deter conflict and stay away from these social issues.”

The Senate Armed Services Committee overwhelmingly voted to pass the bill out of committee despite a narrowly approved amendment, which Wicker had previously introduced as a bill, that would prohibit the military from prioritizing the demographic characteristics of service members above individual merit and performance.

"Promote the best. Work toward diversity," he explained. "But let's resist when it comes to this idea of equal outcomes. And that's what they're talking about when they say equity. So equal opportunity, emphatic yes. Equal outcomes, that's not the American way and that's not what has made our military strong."

DOD's abortion policy has become one of the most partisan issues revolving around the NDAA this time around. Following the Supreme Court's reversal of Roe v. Wade, and the subsequent restrictive abortion laws that many conservative legislatures passed, the Pentagon announced an updated policy that includes reimbursing the travel expenses incurred for a service member or dependent who needs to travel out of state for an abortion due to local laws.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), a member of the committeee, has held up military nominations for roughly six months due to this policy, which he argues is contrary to a federal prohibition on most taxpayer funding of abortion. Tuberville's hold has blocked roughly 260 nominations, some of which are senior defense leaders, and DOD officials have said that number could exceed 650 if his hold extends through the remainder of the calendar year.

While Wicker doesn't support the Pentagon's abortion policy, he noted, "We need to get our top generals placed. We are exploring a number of ways to make concrete steps in that direction."

Senators are set to receive a briefing on the policy on Wednesday. Tuberville and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke last week about his hold, and a DOD spokesperson said they expect to talk again this week.

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The position leading the Marine Corps, known as the commandant, is currently being occupied by Gen. Eric Smith. Smith is holding the position in an acting capacity and retaining his spot as the number two because he hasn't been confirmed to the top position due to Tuberville's hold. A number of other Joint Chiefs of Staff departures are set to take place in the next three months, and it's unclear whether the former football coach's hold will still be in place.

"I have been told by senior military officers, the top military officers, that it does constitute a real problem in getting the job done," Wicker added. "Marine generals with four stars on their shoulders that told me straightforward ... that it is [a] problem they're having to get around. It's something I hope we can resolve."