Three branches of the U.S. military are now without Senate-confirmed leadership in the roles whose occupants would normally be part of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a list now including the U.S. Marines, Army, and Navy. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) has been holding up their replacements, objecting to the progression of hundreds of military nominations in protest of a policy from the Defense Department to provide travel support to personnel seeking an abortion.
The Pentagon is not directly funding these abortions. Rather, the travel support stands to help personnel deal with the patchwork of access that has taken shape following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, which allowed Republican state officials to impose their own limits on the procedure. The support from the Defense Department has been cast as an issue of essentially recruitment and retention, since servicemembers in need of an abortion without readily available options may leave military service, while those who could see themselves in such a position might never join.
At a ceremony to honor the departing Navy leader, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin outlined the stakes of Tuberville’s objections in the Senate, which have debilitated the ordinarily, well, orderly process of confirming military nominations and promotions. While it’s procedurally possible the Senate could formally vote down Tuberville on each nomination, it’s unclear such is feasible because of the chamber’s schedule, leaving high-stakes responsibilities in the military to “acting” officials.
“This is unprecedented, it is unnecessary, and it is unsafe,” Austin told the crowd. “And this sweeping hold is undermining America’s military readiness. It’s hindering our ability to retain our very best officers. And it is upending the lives of far too many American military families. Our troops deserve better, our military families deserve better, and our allies and partners deserve better, and our national security deserves better.”
Others opposing Tuberville have also mentioned the impact on military families whose life plans have been effectively put on hold or upended by Tuberville’s actions.
“Three of our military services are operating without Senate-confirmed leaders. This is unprecedented, it is unnecessary, and it is unsafe.”
— Defense Sec. Lloyd Austin shares “painful milestone” at relinquishment of office ceremony for Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday pic.twitter.com/zKxhwPi55M
— The Recount (@therecount) August 14, 2023
