'Make them whole': Senators promise back pay to military after Tuberville held up promotions

17 July 2024

Sen. Tommy Tuberville's (R-Alabama) months-long blockade of military promotions for a political grudge was roundly criticized for jeopardizing national security. Now that it's over, some senators are vowing that those senior officers will get compensated for the pay they lost due to Tuberville's obstruction.

Military publication Stars and Stripes reported that an amendment has been included in a must-pass defense appropriations bill that includes back pay for the hundreds of military officers affected by Tuberville's blockade that lasted for nearly all of 2023. Sens. Joe Manchin (I-West Virginia) and Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) led the passage of the amendment through the Senate Armed Services Committee, and now it awaits a vote by the full Senate.

“We have a responsibility in Congress to make them whole,” Manchin said. “I will continue doing everything in my power to ensure the passage of our bill to compensate our troops and strengthen America’s national security.”

According to Stars and Stripes, nearly two dozen officers awaiting their promotion to brigadier general (one star) missed out on roughly $2,600 a month in unpaid compensation for the length of Tuberville's standoff, which lasted from February to December of last year. Brigadier generals waiting for their second star (major general) lost out on an additional $2,000 a month. In addition to the officers themselves, their families also lost out on benefits they would have otherwise had if the promotions went through.

"This legislation would make certain they and their families receive the benefits they missed out on for several months," Rounds told the outlet.

The publication reported that many of the officers affected had been promoted due to "exemplary service," most of whom were in combat zones. As the blockade stretched on, several Republicans publicly condemned Tuberville on the Senate floor, accusing him of embarking on a "national security suicide mission."

"We have a really dangerous world, a really dangerous world right now,” Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) said last fall. “And to say, ‘Oh, don’t worry, this isn’t impacting readiness,’ with all due respect to my colleague, that’s just wrong. It’s not even a close call.”

Tuberville first promised to use his power as a senator to unilaterally block the military promotions — which require Senate confirmation — over a Pentagon policy that compensates members for reproductive healthcare costs. This reimbursement included paying troops' travel costs if they had to leave their state to obtain abortion care, with many states outlawing the procedure in the wake of the Supreme Court's 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

If the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act passes the full Senate, it will need to pass the House of Representatives before reaching President Joe Biden's desk. The GOP-controlled House has not yet indicated whether it will approve the back pay amendment.

Click here to read Stars and Stripes full report in AL.com.

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