Dear John,
By now, you’ve probably heard about Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville’s courageous stand for life. Senate Democrats have been accusing him of damaging military readiness, but he has continued to fight to protect the unborn and uphold the rule of law by withholding unanimous consent for mass confirmations and promotions until the Biden administration reverses its unlawful policy of paying for servicemembers to travel out of state for abortions. And last night, Senator Chuck Schumer caved, putting forward three top officials for floor consideration, one at a time—exactly the way Senator Tuberville has been saying he could for months.
The mainstream media has been in a bit of a frenzy over Tuberville’s holds on confirming or promoting servicemembers en masse, as if no such thing has ever happened in Congress before. But a quick look at the record shows that Senator Tuberville is not the first to hold up Senate confirmations.
Will you send a message to your senators now, and ask them to stand with Senator Tuberville?
In 2020, Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) announced that she would block the Senate confirmation of more than 1,100 senior military promotions to pressure then-Secretary of Defense Mark Esper to promote Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman. In 2010, then-Senator Jim Webb (D-Va.) threatened to hold all Pentagon military nominations until the Defense Department explained its decision to close a military base in his state. And just this year, Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) threatened to hold Pentagon nominees, because he was upset his home state lost its bid for the U.S. Space Command headquarters.
These are just a few of several examples of members of Congress holding up Senate confirmations due to federal government policy.
Senator Tuberville’s actions are far from “unprecedented,” as some have claimed. In fact, it is the Biden administration that is going against the norm. No other administration, not even the pro-abortion Obama administration, has established a policy to use taxpayer funds to pay for expenses relating to abortion. Senator Tuberville’s hold is not itself a radical departure from established precedent—it is in response to one.
In July, the House of Representatives passed an amendment sponsored by Rep. Ronny Jackson (TX) to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would reverse Biden’s unlawful policy if the bill becomes law.
Send a message to your U.S. Representative now, telling them how you feel about their vote on the Jackson Amendment, and urging your senators to stand with Senator Tuberville!
Sincerely,
Your Friends at FRC Action
