Israel war: Tuberville’s office says military promotion hold will remain despite war

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) will not be lifting his hold on hundreds of military promotions despite a mounting war in Israel, his office said on Monday, saying it does not affect U.S. readiness.

The senator, who launched his protest against the Pentagon’s abortion travel policy in February, has caused a delay in more than 300 military promotions, but each officer can still be confirmed individually.

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“The Pentagon clearly thinks forcing taxpayers to facilitate abortion is more important than confirming their top nominees without a vote. They could end this situation TODAY by dropping their illegal and immoral policy and get everyone confirmed rapidly, but they refuse,” Tuberville spokesman Steve Stafford told NBC News. “If the Biden administration wants their nominees confirmed, then Senate Democrats can do what [Tuberville] just did in September and file a cloture petition to force a vote.”

Tuberville recently led Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to force a vote on the confirmation of the United States’s most senior officers, including the confirmation of the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Charles Q. Brown.

The statement comes after a Palestinian terrorist organization, Hamas, launched surprise attacks against Israel on Saturday during a Jewish holiday. Israel has since retaliated by launching its own missile strikes into the Gaza Strip, and the Israeli government has declared war against Hamas.

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Stafford told the Washington Examiner that the hold was not affecting the readiness of the U.S. or its allies and stated the senator “stands with the people of Israel and supports their right to defend themselves against these shameful and cowardly terrorist attacks.”

At least nine U.S. nationals were among the more than 700 fatalities in the attack, the State Department confirmed on Monday, and others remain unaccounted for. Thousands of others have been wounded, but there is no tally on how many Americans have been wounded. Two members of Congress were in Israel at the time of the first attack but have since safely returned to the U.S.