Republican senators are laying the groundwork to vote before Christmas on a Democratic-drafted resolution to circumvent the blockade that Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R) has placed in front of more than 400 military nominees.
Republican frustrations with Tuberville and his ally, Senate Steering Committee Chairman Mike Lee (R-Utah), spilled into public view again early Thursday morning in yet another sign of tension between pro-defense GOP lawmakers and conservative populists.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a prominent Senate defense hawk, said that he will be ready to vote for a resolution to change Senate procedure and allow Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to bring hundreds of military promotions to the floor to be confirmed en bloc if Tuberville doesn’t cut a deal to break the backlog by Christmas.
“I promise you this. This will be the last holiday this happens,” Graham told Tuberville on the Senate floor, referring to the uncertainty faced by the group of military officers heading into Thanksgiving.
“If it takes me to vote to break loose these folks, I will,” Graham declared.
