Tommy Tuberville's Block of Military Promotions Hits His Home State

Alabama Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville's standoff with the Department of Defense over its abortion policy is already having an awkward impact on the defense industry's presence at home—particularly after his feud allegedly cost the state a chance to host the U.S. Space Command this month.

Representatives from dozens of U.S. defense contractors gathered Tuesday in Huntsville for the 26th annual Space and Missile Defense Symposium, one of the nation's leading educational, professional development and networking events in the space and missile defense community.

The event, held every year in the "rocket city," is a touchstone gathering for the industry, and is attended by everyone ranging from government officials to economic development professionals from regions with strong ties to the defense sector.

Missing, however, were some of the top U.S. officials who were initially scheduled to speak at the event.

According to Defense News reporter Jen Judson, some of the top-billed speakers at the event were not permitted to speak because they are serving in an "acting" capacity or awaiting Senate confirmation amid a standing blockade by Tuberville, the former Auburn University football coach who has pledged to block every one of President Joe Biden's military appointments and promotions unless the Pentagon reverses its policy allowing servicemembers access to abortions.

General James H. Dickinson—head of the U.S. Space Command—had reportedly pulled out of the event one week earlier, while several top military officials who were previously scheduled for retirement commented during the event that their exits from the Pentagon were delayed because their replacements had not yet received Senate confirmation.

Reached for comment, an organizer with the SMD Symposium noted that senior military leaders are regularly invited to the event and have canceled at the last minute in the past "due to world situations or other factors."

But the timing was hard to miss.

Tuesday's symposium came shortly after news that Huntsville would be passed over as the new home of the U.S. Space Command on Dickinson's recommendation, despite several independent studies, several Pentagon reviews spanning two administrations, and the Biden administration's own assessment that Huntsville's Redstone Arsenal was the optimal location for the facility.

The plan fell apart when Dickinson, according to the Associated Press, expressed concern to the president that moving his agency's headquarters from Colorado Springs would jeopardize military readiness as the country races to remain on equal footing with countries like China.

Though the Biden administration claimed the decision to cancel was not based on abortion, the decision rankled Alabama's conservative delegation in Washington, with some believing the decision was retribution for Tuberville's position on abortion.

Huntsville, Tuberville said at the time, was selected "over 59 other cities on the basis of 21 different criteria." However, "as soon as Joe Biden took office he paused movement on that decision and inserted politics into what had been a fair and objective process."

The issue appears to have legs. Last week, Republicans on the House Armed Services Committee published a letter demanding answers from the White House on its decision, with committee Chairman and Alabama Representative Mike Rogers claiming the lack of information was a sign that the administration had something to hide.

Newsweek reached out to Tuberville's office via email for comment.