Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) expressed his dissatisfaction with the current U.S. military strength under the President Joe Biden-led administration.
What Happened: Tuberville, during an interview with Newsmax’s Eric Bolling, described the U.S. army as the weakest he has seen in his lifetime and blamed the Biden administration’s policies for the decline.
He took issue with the Pentagon’s request for $114 million for its diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) programs for the fiscal year 2024. The senator also mentioned the now-revoked COVID-19 vaccine mandate for all active service members as a contributing factor to the military’s current state.
“$114 million on diversity training, you’ve got to be kidding me,” Tuberville said during the interview.
“We’ve got the weakest military that we’ve had in probably my lifetime.”
See Also: Marjorie Taylor Greene Faces Backlash For Calling Joe Biden ‘An Old Fool’ In Another Ageist Swipe
“Infiltrating our military is all this wokeness, and it’s coming from the top, coming from Joe Biden, coming from Secretary of Defense [Lloyd] Austin. It’s coming from [former Joint Chiefs Chair General Mark] Milley, who is recently gone. It’s a disaster,” he added.
“They can’t get anybody to join the military. They’re begging people to come back that left because they didn’t take the vaccine. We’re in huge trouble. Our country is in huge trouble.”
Why It Matters: Tuberville’s remarks have been met with criticism. Tuberville, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee who has never served in the military, is delaying hundreds of military nominations and promotions in protest against a Pentagon policy that reimburses travel expenses for service members seeking abortions. This policy came into effect after the Supreme Court reversed Roe vs. Wade in June 2022.
His assertions have been condemned by critics, such as Alexander Vindman, a former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, and Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman who served in the Air Force. “I agree with you Tuberville. The U.S. military is weakened. But not by ‘wokeness,’ it is weakened by your attacks, obstruction of military promotions, and your serving our enemy’s interests,” Vindman posted on X.
Other Democratic and Republican Senators have also expressed their disapproval of Tuberville’s protest against military promotions over the abortion issue.
“Tuberville is an idiot, wrong, and obviously doesn’t understand the absolute lethality of the US military. Come on Alabama do better,” said Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman.
Photo via Shutterstock
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