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Schumer Caves, Grants Tommy Tuberville's Call for Votes to Confirm Certain Military Promotions

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  September 20, 2023 2:45 PM

This article has been updated to include posts between Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), as well as to reflect the Senate vote to confirm military promotions. 

On Wednesday, after several months of holding up military nominees and promotions due to the Pentagon's illegal abortion policy, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) posted he had asked Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to call a vote on Gen. Eric Smith to become the next commandant of the Marine Corps., and that Schumer has finally agreed to do so. 

Under the policy, which violates 10 U.S.C. 1093, servicemembers and their dependents can receive paid time off for abortions, and travel expenses are covered if the abortion takes place out-of-state. There is no gestational limit.

As The Hill reported, other votes teed up include Charles "C.Q." Brown as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Gen. Randy George to become chief of staff of the Army, in addition to Gen. Eric Smith to become the next commandant of the Marine Corps.

While The Hill framed the issue as one "marking Democrats’ first maneuver to get around Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-Ala.) hold on more than 300 promotions," it can't be emphasized enough how Schumer is caving by honoring a point that Tuberville has made from the start.

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Even the far-left HuffPost published a headline that was less than flattering towards the majority leader, "Chuck Schumer Blinks Amid GOP Blockade Of Military Nominations."

With regards to those over 300 promotions that Tuberville is holding up, the senator is opposing them by objecting to unanimous consent. Schumer has been able to call for a floor vote all along. 

Speaking about how certain military promotions "must remain in limbo," Schumer said from the Senate floor on Wednesday that "we cannot, we should not allow that to be the case" and "so I have just filed cloture on the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Commandant of the Marine Corps., and the Army Chief of Staff."

With regards to Schumer's point that "these men should have already been confirmed" and "they should already be serving in their new positions," it's worth reminding that they could have been, had Schumer called for a vote sooner. Nevertheless, the majority leader, as one whose party is in control of the chamber, lamented that "the Senate should not have to go through procedural hoops to please one brazen and misguided senator, but this is where we are."

Schumer refused to see it as caving, though. In addition to claiming Tuberville "accomplished nothing," The Hill quoted him as saying "simply put, besides the most extreme elements of the Republican Party, no one thinks this is a good idea, and in the face of that opposition, it seems that Sen. Tuberville is becoming more and more desperate to get out of the box he put himself in. The blame falls squarely on the shoulders of the senior senator from Alabama."

This is only a small taste of how Democrats, including the Biden administration, have maligned Tuberville for standing up for the right to life and the rule of law.

As Townhall has covered at great length, though, Tuberville has the support of many of his Republican colleagues in the Senate and the House, as well as of grassroots leaders and veterans. A poll from last month also showed he has the support of Alabama voters--the people he is most accountable to--with these holds. 

The administration remains preoccupied with smearing the senator as well. As Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), who has been a vocal supporter of Tuberville, and who has even objected to confirming promotions by unanimous consent himself, shared that a briefing from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin that was supposed to be about the war in Ukraine discussed the holds.

Tuberville's official and political X accounts are both full of his fellow Republican senators not only expressing support for their colleague, but issuing that reminder that Schumer could have called such votes months ago. 

Polling shows that 60 percent of Americans oppose taxpayer dollars going towards elective abortions, and the Hyde Amendment is supposed to be in place to offer such protections.

In a series of back-and-forth posts over X, Tuberville made clear that he has not been bluffing on the matter, and also that the military holds will remain so long as the abortion policy is in place.

Later on Wednesday, from the Senate floor, Tuberville again reiterated that the holds will remain. 

"Democrats can't have it both ways," Tuberville pointed out. "Either they can confirm these nominees through regular order, or they can stop complaining about acting officials. Democrats say this is a large backlog of nominees. They say it would take a long time. Well I agree! It's been a big backlog," he conceded, before reminding who is to blame and insisting the party in control of the chamber actually do something about it then. 

"But again Chuck Schumer allowing the backlog to build up over six months is his fault! We could have been confirming one or two a week for the last 200 days. It would have taken us just four hours each week. But we didn't do it. We took another angle of just sitting back and watching. Chuck Schumer refused again and again and again," Tuberville emphasized, explaining how it points to a lack of leadership.

"We don't have a lack of leadership in our military, we have a lack of leadership right here in the United States Senate! Despite the lack of leadership, senators are perfectly capable of voting. Voting is our job! That's why we were sent here," Tuberville declared. 

"So to be clear, my hold is still in place. The hold will remain in place as long as the Pentagon's illegal abortion policy remains in place. If the Pentagon lifts the policy, then I will lift the hold. It's as easy as that," he explained. "That's been my position from the very beginning, the senator reminded. "I'm not afraid to vote on these nominees, or on all of these nominees. I came here to this chamber to vote. And I reserve the right to seek another cloture position on the nominees in the future. So that's where we stand today." 

Ultimately, the Senate voted 83-11 to confirm Brown to replace outgoing Chairman Mark Miley. All 11 'no' votes were from Republican senators, including Tuberville. Sens. Mike Braun (IN), Ted Cruz (TX), Josh Hawley (MO), Lee, Roger Marshall (KS), Eric Schmitt (MO), JD Vance (OH), Ron Johnson (WI), Cynthia Lummis (WY), and Marco Rubio (FL) also voted no. 

A pinned post from Tuberville earlier in the day also called for a vote.