Tommy Tuberville Called 'Despicable' by Lt. General After Military Block

Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville has been branded "despicable" and accused of "damaging the national security of our nation" by retired Lieutenant General Mark Hertling after continuing to block senior military promotions in protest at the Pentagon's policies on abortion.

Consequently, the U.S. Marine Corps is without a confirmed leader for the first time in 164 years, after former Commandant Gen. David Berger retired on Monday.

The move angered Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin who, whilst not mentioning Tuberville by name, described "timely transitions of confirmed leadership" as "central to the defense of the United States."

Speaking to Newsweek, Senator Jacky Rosen, a Democrat from Nevada, commented: "This reckless blockade of military promotions is part of an extreme, anti-choice agenda to restrict servicemembers' freedom to travel for reproductive care.

"Failure to fill these positions poses great risk to our readiness and our national security. It's deeply shameful for Senator Tuberville to play politics with our military."

Hertling, formerly the commander of the United States Army in Europe, retweeted a video of Tuberville describing a white nationalist as "an American" during an appearance on Kaitlan Collins' CNN show. He commented: "This despicable man Senator Tuberville is knowingly contributing to further misplaced distrust of our institutions & he is significantly damaging the national security of our nation.

"GOP senators: you all need to stop this. He is an embarrassment to all of you as he continues."

In the clip Hertling shared, originally posted by the Acyn Twitter account which covers U.S. politics, Collins asks Tuberville whether white nationalists should be allowed to serve in the American military, then later requests he define the term.

Tuberville replied: "My opinion of a white nationalist, if someone wants to call them white nationalists, is to me an American. Now if that white nationalist is a racist I'm totally against anything that they want to do, because I am 110 percent against racism. But I want somebody that's in our military that's strong, that believes in this country that's an American, that will fight along anybody whether it's a man or a woman, black or white, it doesn't make any difference.

"So I'm totally against identity politics, I think it's ruining this country and I think the Democrats ought to be ashamed for how they're doing this because its dividing this country and its making this country weaker every day."

Newsweek has approached Senator Tuberville for comment by calling his Washington, D.C. office, and completing the online contact form on his website.

Tuberville has been holding up hundreds of senior military promotions, which are typically approved unanimously by the Senate floor, for more than five months in protest at the Pentagon covering some expenses for servicemembers who travel for an abortion.

Writing for The Washington Post in June, Tuberville insisted his action is "not affecting readiness" within the military. He commented: "The hold affects only those at the very top—generals and flag officers. The people who actually fight are not affected at all."

In March, Austin defended the military paying some expenses for servicewomen who want an abortion when testifying before the Senate.

He said: "Almost 80,000 of our women are stationed in places where they don't have access to non-covered reproductive health care. And I heard from our troops, I heard from our senior leaders, I heard from our chiefs and also our secretaries.

"This policy is based on strong legal ground. And it is not a law, it is a policy. And so, you know, we obviously don't pass laws in the Department of Defense."

Update 7/13/23 2:15 a.m. ET: This story has been updated with comment from Senator Jacky Rosen.