CLARIFICATION: An earlier version of this story should have stated that Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee, has publicly said in the past that she supported exceptions to abortion for rape, incest and the life of a mother.
NASHVILLE — Tennessee Democratic U.S. Senate hopeful Gloria Johnson is criticizing incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn for what Johnson calls the senator’s “especially disgraceful” failure to speak out against a colleague who is blocking some 300 high-level military appointments in a stand against the Pentagon’s abortion policy.
The lawmaker, U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, has been placing holds on President Joe Biden’s military nominations since February after the Department of Defense implemented the new policy following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Tuberville has said he won’t relent until the Senate holds a vote on the policy implemented by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for service members living in states with abortion bans or restrictions. The policy provides funding for travel when a service member goes out of state for an abortion or to receive other reproductive care. Tennessee has a near total ban on abortion.
“Tommy Tuberville is aiding and abetting foreign dictators who hate America and target our troops,” Johnson, who formally announced her candidacy last week, said in a text to the Chattanooga Times Free Press. “He’s betrayed our military for political points, and Blackburn’s continued silence on the issue is especially disgraceful when too many troops call Tennessee home.”