President Joe Biden has criticized Senator Tommy Tuberville for his resistance to a new Department of Defense policy that funds abortions. Tuberville, a pro-life senator, is blocking more than 200 military nominations due to his opposition to the Pentagon’s new policy, which is considered illegal by some. This policy requires taxpayers to cover travel expenses and paid leave for military service members and their families who choose to abort.
Republicans estimate that this could result in around 4,100 more abortions annually. Tuberville’s opposition to taxpayer-funded abortions, a stance shared by many Americans, has been termed “bizarre” by Biden. Biden criticized Tuberville for delaying nominations until the abortion policy is changed.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said of Tuberville:
“It is dangerous what is he, what he’s doing, and it is unacceptable,” she said. “We’ve been very, very clear about this. It is important to move forward with the president’s DoD nominations as they relate to our national security, as it relates to military safety, as it relates to what we need to make sure we’re providing for our military force.”
“He is hurting our national security.”
Tuberville has responded by placing the blame on the Biden administration and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin:
“This is about a tyrannical executive branch walking all over the United States Senate and doing our jobs,” he said. “This was Secretary Austin’s choice. [He] thought abortion is more important than his highest-level military nominations.”
Senator Tuberville, and some others have argued that the recent pro-abortion policy is in direct breach of Section 1093 of Title 10 of the U.S. Code. Tuberville’s procedures simply limit the U.S. Senate from collectively voting to approve large numbers of nominees simultaneously.
