Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama) told reporters on Capitol Hill on Tuesday that “White nationalists are racists,” a statement he had previously refused to make because he did not want to link White nationalism with racism.
Tuberville had previously stated, “it’s an opinion that White nationalists are racist,” when pressed on his earlier comments on White nationalism on Monday.
Tuberville, in an interview with AWN’s “The Source with Kaitlan Collins,” vigorously defended his earlier statements. When Collins explained that a White nationalist is someone who thinks White people are better than other people, Tuberville responded, “Well, that’s some people’s opinion.”
Tuberville responded to a question on his views on white nationalism by saying, “My opinion of a White nationalist, if someone wants to call them White nationalist, to me is an American.”
As an individual, Tuberville remarked, “If people think a White nationalist is a racist, I agree with that.”
After being asked if he thought White supremacists should be permitted in the military, Tuberville said, “I call them Americans.” This prompted much criticism at the time.
The comments surfaced again on Monday, drawing criticism from both sides of the aisle on Tuesday.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer blasted the Alabama Republican in floor remarks on Tuesday for his statements on White nationalism. Schumer had previously called on Tuberville to reject White nationalism as “un-American” and end his hold on military selections.
Given another opportunity to set the record straight, he made comments last night that seemed to imply that White nationalists aren’t always racist. White nationalism does have an American home. Schumer argued that there is no universally accepted definition of White nationalism. It’s unbelievable that the Alabama senator needs to be told the truth yet again. The Alabama senator is just wrong. White nationalism cannot be defined as a matter of personal preference.
Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, on Tuesday, denounced White nationalism as “unacceptable.” If Tuberville’s unwillingness to reject it worries him, Senator McConnell told AWN, “White supremacy is simply unacceptable in the military and the whole country.”
Republican Senate Whip John Thune told reporters that White nationalists have no place in the Republican Party or the armed forces, rebutting Tuberville’s remarks and adding, “I am not sure exactly what he was trying to say there.”
Simply put, “there is no place for White nationalism in our party,” Thune added.
When asked if White nationalists had a place in the armed forces, Thune replied, “There’s no place for it there either.”
To show her disapproval of new Pentagon policies regarding reproductive health released earlier this year, Tuberville has been blocking military appointments in the Senate. These policies offer greater assistance to service members and families who must go out of state to have an abortion. Even while Thune agrees that the Pentagon policy on abortion is incorrect, he expressed alarm on Tuesday about the long-term ramifications of Tuberville’s hold on votes for military promotions.
The longer this goes on, “I think the longer this drags on, the more problematic it becomes for the military to function and operate the way that I think the American people expect them to operate,” Thune said.
Monday night, Tuberville told AWN that minority party senators’ “only power is to put a hold on something.”
Collins pressed Tuberville on whether he agrees with the seven past defence secretaries who sent a letter in May saying the hold was “harming military readiness and risks damaging US national security,” to which Tuberville replied, “They were nominated, they weren’t elected.” I was chosen by the voters of Alabama to serve as their representative in Washington.
Tuberville continued, “I’m a senator; I can hold any confirmation I want until we get some kind of confirmation of why you’re doing this.” This was directed at the White House and the Pentagon.
Earlier on Monday, Tuberville told AWN’s Manu Raju that he would not lift the hold he had placed on the funding, adding that he does not accept worries about the impact on military readiness “whatsoever” and that “this is not a risk.”
A Democratic aide familiar with the process told AWN that Tuberville met with Rhode Island Democrat and Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed on Monday afternoon to discuss his reservations. The two men talked before Reed headed to the Senate floor to lobby for the Marine Corps’ new commanding officer. The assistant, speaking to AWN, said there was no conclusion. Tuberville has not been swayed by the committee’s repeated attempts to have a conversation with him about his holds.
