Staff Reports
In the ongoing feud between President Joe Biden and Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) over a military abortion policy, Tuberville is accusing Democrats of being willing to “burn down the Senate” just to get their way. Tuberville has placed a hold on military promotions in order to pressure the Department of Defense (DOD) to end a policy that covers abortion-related travel expenses for service members. His hold prevents the Senate from approving a large number of military promotion nominees through regular procedures, although a few nominees have still been handled individually.
As a result of this impasse, over 300 military officers are now awaiting Senate action on their promotions and nominations. The Democratic Senate majority is considering ways to bypass Tuberville’s hold without compromising on the military abortion travel policy. One reported plan is temporarily changing Senate rules to quickly process the pending promotions and nominations. However, Tuberville argues that this approach would “burn down the Senate” and warned that changing the rules permanently would set a dangerous precedent.
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The reported plan to bypass Tuberville’s hold would require a 60-vote threshold for a temporary change in the Senate’s nomination procedures. This would allow for the swift approval of many military nominees, but it would require the support of nine Senate Republicans to succeed. Tuberville has held onto his blockade of the military nomination process for months, claiming that the DOD’s abortion travel policy violates the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits the use of federal funds for abortions, except in specific circumstances.
The DOD adopted the new abortion policy following the 2022 Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which granted states the ability to regulate certain aspects of abortion. The U.S. Department of Justice later concluded that military service members in certain states could face difficulties accessing abortions due to the new legal precedent. The DOD then announced a travel allowance for “non-covered reproductive health care” to help cover transportation costs associated with obtaining abortions. However, service members are still responsible for paying for the actual abortion procedure.
President Biden has criticized Tuberville’s hold on military promotions, calling it “bizarre” and “irresponsible” and accusing the senator of jeopardizing national security. Despite some meetings between Tuberville and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, no agreement has been reached. Tuberville argues that bypassing his hold without negotiation would demonstrate the Democrats’ unwillingness to compromise and their desire to have things their own way.
