DoD’s Abortion Policy at Issue
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL)
WASHINGTON, DC — Delays in promotions directly impacts military readiness, DoD officials have said. But there isn’t much they can do about it as long as Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) is blocking the expedited promotion of more than 150 military generals and flag officers until DoD changes a policy that provides travel expenses and paid time off for servicemembers and dependents seeking abortions.
Tuberville’s actions have drawn criticism from both sides of the aisle. The abortion policy was instituted by the military in February in reaction to the passage of restrictions in multiple states. A servicemember or dependent who is stationed in a state where abortion has been banned can receive travel reimbursement and up to 21 days of administrative leave in order to travel to another state to obtain an abortion. The policy came under fire from several Republican legislators, who cited it as an example of the politicization of the military.
In March, the Senate passed a package that would expedite the promotions of rank-and-file servicemembers by unanimous consent. Tuberville’s hold on the package means the Senate would be forced to vote on each promotion individually by a simple majority vote—a much more time-consuming process.
Tuberville framed his actions as a defense of the responsible use of taxpayer money.
“We’re talking about taxpayers’ funding for travel and extra paid time to get elective abortions. … This policy includes spouses and dependents,” Tuberville said in a statement from the Senate floor. “We’re talking about taxpayer funding for somebody’s kids to go get an abortion in another state. This has never been in the policy until now.”
He added, “This morning I received an email from a soldier’s mom in Alabama. She said her son has had to pay thousands of dollars out of pocket to buy uniforms and bedsheets. She said it is absurd for taxpayers to pay for travel for abortions while our troops … are paying out of pocket for their uniforms. … [Senate Majority Leader ChuckSchumer (D-NY)] said this is about women making their own choices. That is not true. That is exactly not true. This is about taxpayer funding.”
While military promotions have been delayed by senators protesting a political point before, it rarely lasts for long. However, Tuberville has said that he has no intention of backing down.
“I will stay here until hell freezes over,” he declared. “I am not going to be intimidated by a campaign of selective outrage.”
A week into Tuberville’s hold on promotions, he and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had the opportunity to speak directly at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the DoD’s budget.
“The military has performed abortions for years. All were cases of rape, incest or harm to the mom. Over the last 40 years, I haven’t heard one military person complain that we weren’t performing enough abortions,” Tuberville told Austin.
Austin explained that, with states passing and enforcing their own individual abortion restrictions, the reality for women serving in the military has become very different.
“Almost 1 in 5 troops are women,” Austin told the committee. “And they don’t get a chance to choose where they’re stationed. So almost 80,000 women are stationed in places where they don’t have access to non-covered reproductive healthcare.”
As for the legality of the policy, Austin added, “I heard from our troops. I heard from our senior leaders. I heard from our chiefs and also our secretaries, and this policy is based on strong legal ground. It is not a law. It is a policy. We don’t pass laws at the Department of Defense.”
Meanwhile, the delays in promotions will have a direct impact on the ability of the military to conduct day-to-day business, Austin told the committee.
“The effects are absolutely critical in terms of the impact on the force,” he said. “This is one of the busiest and most complex times we’ve seen lately. We see the largest conflict in Europe since World War II; we see an aggressive China operating in the Indo-Pacific, we see Iranian elements going after our troops, and there are a number of things happening logistically indicating that we could be in a contest on any one given day. Not approving the recommendation for promotions actually creates a ripple effect through the force that makes us far less ready than we need to be.”
That ripple effect would spread out to include the families of servicemembers, he noted.
“The effects are cumulative, and they will affect families. They will affect kids going to school, because they won’t be able to change their duty station,” Austin explained.
Speaking directly to Tuberville, Austin pleaded with him to change his mind, saying, “I implore you to reconsider and allow our nominations to move forward. It will make a significant difference to our force.”
