Democrats blast Tuberville hold during Joint Staff Chairman nominee hearing

By Haley Britzky and Oren Liebermann, CNN

(CNN) — Throughout the confirmation hearing for the most senior US military officer, Democratic senators and the nominee alike spoke out against an ongoing hold on military nominations, saying it is hurting military families and could discourage officers from staying in uniform.

“We will lose talent because of those challenges,” Air Force Gen. C.Q. Brown, who has been nominated to be the next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Tuesday. “The spouse network is alive and well, and the spouses will compare notes and you know, the member may want to serve but the spouses and the families get a huge vote.”

Brown was speaking at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, which is a routine step in the nomination process despite his confirmation being stalled alongside more than 200 other general and flag officers. The nominations hold is being led by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, who has used the blockade as a way to protest new Pentagon policies on reproductive health care, which among other things included a travel allowance for service members who must go out of state to receive an abortion.

Tuberville, who is also a member of the Armed Services Committee, has vowed he would not back off the hold, despite outcries from military leaders and lawmakers alike. Tuberville told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on “The Source” Monday night that when lawmakers are in the minority party in the Senate, “the only power we have is to put a hold on something.” Tuberville in that interview doubled down on his previous comments on White nationalism and said it was an “opinion” that White nationalists are racist.

In Tuesday’s hearing, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia condemned Tuberville’s approach as “disrespecting and punishing” uniformed officers who “had nothing to do with” the policy Tuberville disagrees with. Kaine said that while people volunteer to serve in the military “knowing that their lives could be at risk,” they may decide it’s something they’re not willing to do because of the hold.

“[I]f they think not only will my life be at risk, but do I want to run the risk that a member of the Senate being unhappy with a policy I had nothing to do with may choose to block my career? That might be a risk that people might choose not to undertake,” he said. “That might be the kind of thing that might make them decide if my article one branch is not going to respect the service that I have given this country including deployments overseas, maybe I should look for a line of work where I will be respected.”

Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada called the hold “outrageous” and told Brown she was “deeply concerned” that his nomination was being held up.

“Enough is enough,” she said. “We need to fill these critical roles, and I would like to see you have a quick confirmation.”

At the start of the hearing, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut and also a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters that Republican lawmakers “ought to be telling Sen. Tommy Tuberville this irrational obstructionist blocking of confirmations is harming our national interest.”

Brown echoed similar concerns that the hold would impact readiness of the military by putting people with less experience into command positions because those nominated to take command can’t be confirmed. The deputy commanders who would temporarily take over in many cases throughout the military are “strong,” he said, but “at the same time, they don’t have the same level of experience.”

Tuberville met Monday afternoon with Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, a Democrat from Rhode Island, to discuss his holds, a Democratic aide familiar with the process told CNN. The two men met shortly before Reed went to the Senate floor to ask for quick approval of a new leader for the Marine Corps. The aide told CNN, however, there was no resolution. Several members of the committee have now tried to talk with Tuberville about his holds, but he remains unmoved.

In his questioning of Brown, Tuberville did not mention his hold, instead focusing on the number of personnel in the joint staff – asking Brown if he has suggestions “on where we could look to cut staff or budget … and not cut back on efficiency” – and recruiting challenges. Recruiting “is in a tailspin in most areas,” Tuberville said.

“We’ve got to do better with salaries, incentives, all those things to get our young men and women involved in interest in our military … But unless we have the people that actually does the job on the ground, and in the planes, and on the sea, we’re gonna have huge problems because we live in a dangerous world. So thank you for taking this on, it’s going to be a hard job and any way we can help you, we’re here to help,” Tuberville said.

Just minutes later, Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts lambasted Tuberville’s offer to help.

“I heard the senator say as he completed his questions that if there was anything he could do to help you in your actions and help the service, that he would be glad to do it,” Warren said. “What he could do to help is lift this stay before it does more damage to our country.”

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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CNN’s Lauren Fox and Michael Conte contributed to this report.