Navy, Air Force, and Army secretaries claim Tuberville is putting ‘national security at risk’
Asher Notheis
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Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-AL) hold on military promotions is putting the United States‘s national security “at risk,” according to several secretaries for the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force.
The hold Tuberville has enacted on military promotions is over the Pentagon reimbursing service members and their dependents for costs incurred when traveling out of state for abortions, which the Pentagon enacted in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. The trio of secretaries, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth, Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, and Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, argue that the Pentagon’s policy “is critical and necessary to meet our obligations to the force,” according to an op-ed on Monday.
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“Senators have many legislative and oversight tools to show their opposition to a specific policy,” the op-ed reads. “They are free to introduce legislation, gather support for that legislation and pass it. But placing a blanket hold on all general and flag officer nominees, who as apolitical officials have traditionally been exempt from the hold process, is unfair to these military leaders and their families. And it is putting our national security at risk.”
The three secretaries also claim that colonels and captains currently in the military will look at the current hold Tuberville is enacting and think that their service is “no longer valued by members of Congress” or the public. Because of this, some might leave military service altogether for other opportunities, leave uniformed service for other opportunities, taking away talent the nation’s Department of Defense needs “to maintain our superiority over our rivals and adversaries.”
Though many Democrats have condemned Tuberville for his hold on military promotions, many Republicans have offered their praise to the Alabama senator, including 2024 presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. Other presidential hopefuls, including Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and former Vice President Mike Pence, have also endorsed Tuberville’s stance.
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In August, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) asked Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to use his authority as head of his conference to pressure Tuberville to end his hold on military promotions. The hold has blocked the nominations of over 300 general and flag officers.
Recent polling data in Alabama showed that Tuberville has the support of the majority of Alabama voters and that more residents there support his hold on military promotions than those who do not.