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The Senate yesterday overwhelmingly confirmed the final two joint chiefs nominees, circumventing Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s ongoing blockade of military appointments.
The chamber voted 95-1 to confirm Adm. Lisa Franchetti to lead the Navy and Gen. David Allvin to lead the Air Force.
This comes as for months now Tuberville has forced the Senate to hold individual votes on military promotions. This has led to a backlog of nearly 400 promotions, including senior positions.
Tuberville says he’s doing so to protest the Pentagon’s policy of paying service members’ travel costs to get abortions, a policy Tuberville argues is illegal. Despite causing a headache in the Senate, Tuberville’s move is largely backed by his fellow Republicans, including Florida Gov. Ron Desantis.
However, frustration is starting to show among more hawkish Republicans. Yesterday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) accused Tuberville of doing “great damage” to the American military, while Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) said the blockade makes America look weak on the world stage.