Sen. Tommy Tuberville reaffirmed his commitment to maintaining the holds he has placed on high ranking military positions Thursday.
On the Senate floor, Tuberville spoke about a less than productive Senate Armed Services Committee briefing centered around the holds that Pentagon officials took part in.
“This morning, the Pentagon staff who is in charge of putting this together, gave a briefing to the members of the Senate Armed Services Committee,” Tuberville (R-Auburn) said. “To be honest with you, it was a complete debacle.
“I thought they would be prepared. The briefing confirmed a few things we know about this policy. First of all, there are virtually no restrictions at all on the use of this policy. None.”
Tuberville said during his remarks that the military abortion policy allows for abortions up to birth in some states.
“Pentagon officials confirmed that this policy would facilitate abortion up to the moment of birth depending on the state,” he said. “At the moment of birth. Late term abortion is opposed. Madam President, late term abortion is opposed by about three quarters of the American people.”
However, he did acknowledge that the Department of Defense can legally perform abortions in certain cases.
“To be clear, the DoD has the authority to perform abortions in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother,” said Tuberville. “That was passed on this floor in 1984.
“Now, what we’re talking about with this new policy that no one in this building voted on is taxpayer funding for elective late term abortions. This is radical. It’s extreme. It’s downright wrong.”
The senator then called the current military abortion policy “unprecedented” and said that all of the attacks against him regarding the holds are doing nothing but strengthening his resolve on the issue.
“Well, I will say this. Their abortion policy is unprecedented. We are here to make the law, not the Pentagon,” Tuberville said. “Anyone who calls themselves pro-life needs to stand up and be counted right now. That’s my party included.
“Democrat’s media machine is throwing the kitchen sink at this hold. Doesn’t bother me. I’ve been called everything anyway. It just makes me that much stronger to hear people complain about this, knowing that deep down somewhere there’s a soft part in their heart for the four to five thousand unborn babies that will never breathe life on this earth.
“So, the more Joe Biden attacks me, the more I’m convinced that I’m doing the right thing.”
Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News.