Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., is now facing a wave of criticism for his military holds from Republican veterans in the House of Representatives, including one who recently beseeched the former football coach to rescind his one-man showdown against the Pentagon.
Rep. Brandon Williams, a first-term Republican from New York and former nuclear submarine officer in the Navy, said Friday he paid Tuberville a visit two-and-a-half months ago about his holds on promotions.
"I went and sat in Sen. Tuberville's office for about 45 minutes until he had an opening and would see me, and we had a very frank conversation about it," Williams said at a press conference. "At the time, I was led to believe that it wouldn't last much longer. And here we are two-and-a-half months later. And we certainly don't seem to be any closer."
Navy veteran Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., said he also requested a meeting with Tuberville.
"He had mentioned that these are not officers who are warfighters, that these are desk jockeys in the Pentagon. But the reality is these folks have been warfighters for 20 years," Garcia said. "These are the folks that I flew with in combat operations. And they're looking to continue that service, and they're being compelled not to because of Sen. Tuberville."
The remarks from the congressmen mark an uptick in criticism Tuberville has taken recently from members of his own party. While Tuberville has brushed aside criticism from Democrats and military brass, House Foreign Affairs Chair Mike McCaul, R-Texas, also accused Tuberville earlier this week of "paralyzing the Department of Defense."
At issue is Tuberville's protest against the Pentagon's abortion policy, which reimburses service members their travel expenses and gives them time off to seek an abortion. Tuberville believes the policy is a violation of federal law, so he has imposed a unanimous consent hold on more than 300 promotions across the armed services.
Tuberville has remained steadfast in his position. Further, he has shifted the spotlight and criticized Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., saying all he has to do is bring in each nomination to the floor for a vote.
"This could be handled very easily," Tuberville told Newsmax on Tuesday. "Chuck Schumer, just bring them to the floor. Let's confirm them. Let's work a little bit around here. Don't worry about anything other than work and get the job done for the American people. ... They can do them one at a time."
Regarding the policy itself, Politico reported Friday — citing data from the Pentagon — that very few service member actually use the abortion policy that Tuberville is standing against.
Tuberville’s office had a very simple answer to that: "The Pentagon's claims about the policy being critically necessary to recruiting ... are factually baseless, and they can drop the policy," Steven Stafford, a spokesperson for Tuberville told Politico. "This cuts both ways."