U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) is getting support from some of his Senate collogues in his effort to change the Pentagon’s policy on abortions for members of the military.
Last week, President Joe Biden slammed Tuberville for continuing to hold up military promotions.
“I’d be willing to talk to him if I thought there’s any possibility of him changing his ridiculous position he has,” Biden said during a press conference in Helsinki. “He’s jeopardizing U.S. security by what he’s doing. I expect the Republican Party to stand up, stand up and do something about it.”
Pres. Biden on Sen. Tuberville: "I'd be willing to talk to him if I thought there's any possibility of him changing his ridiculous position he has. He's jeopardizing U.S. security by what he's doing. I expect the Republican Party to stand up, stand up and do something about it." pic.twitter.com/QAKS7G3nIh
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 13, 2023
Tuberville, who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, wants the administration to rescind its policy of paying for travel expenses for servicemembers seeking an abortion in a state where it’s still legal.
U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), who also has a seat on the Armed Services Committee, said on Fox News Sunday that Biden is the one to blame for the current standoff.
WATCH: @SenTomCotton joins the show to discuss the fight on Capitol Hill over the NDAA and American military readiness amid concerns about ammunition shortages. Tune in! pic.twitter.com/LqgWCDndkg
— Fox News Sunday (@FoxNewsSunday) July 16, 2023
“[I]f the secretary of Defense and the president think this is a readiness issue and they want to find the responsible party, they should look in the mirror,” Cotton said. “They’re the ones who are violating the law and using taxpayer funds to pay for abortion tourism.”
Cotton then highlighted why the current abortion policy is “extreme.”
“A young airman and Little Rock Air Force Base could walk in and demand three weeks of uncharged, paid leave and get travel and meals and lodging paid for to go get an elected abortion,” he said. “Another airman could walk in and say ‘my mother and father just unexpectedly died, can I have leave to go to their funeral?’ That would be charged leave that comes out of their annual allotment and they would get no expenses paid.
“I think most Americans agree that is an insane policy. Again the military should not be paying for abortion tourism.”
The senator said if a member of the military wants to get an abortion, it shouldn’t be funded by the taxpayers.
“If they want to take that step, they have 30 days of annual leave,” he said. “It shouldn’t be taxpayer funds giving them three weeks of paid uncharged leave and then also paying for travel and lodging or meals.”
Cotton said the administration should stop its abortion policy if they want the holds to be lifted.
“Well it should end with (Defense Secretary) Lloyd Austin and Joe Biden agreeing to follow the law and rescinding their policy,” he said. “… If Lloyd Austin and Joe Biden think this is a threat to our national security, the simplest thing to do would be to revert to the same practices we have had for decades.”
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
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