Tuberville's hostage-taking of the American military

The United States Senate was once known as the “greatest deliberative body in the world”. Today, its reputation is shattered.

The American people overwhelmingly hold the institution in contempt. It was not broken overnight, and there are many senators who have blood on their hands when it comes to the murder of the US Senate’s dignity, seriousness, functionality, competence, patriotism and integrity. None match the achievements of the longest- serving Senate Majority Leader in American history in breaking the institution that he is perversely described in access media as preserving.

There is no current issue in front of the country that speaks to the shattered condition of our political institutions than the immoral, outrageous and dangerous assault being led against the US military by one US senator. Hundreds of military promotions have been held up by Tommy Tuberville, Alabama’s dimwitted Republican/MAGA senator, who has blockaded the necessary US Senate confirmation votes that are required for promotion, which have now reached 98 in the Air Force, 91 in the Army, 86 in the Navy, 18 in the Marines and eight in the Space Force.

Currently, the Army, Navy and Marine Corps have no Senate-confirmed chiefs in place. Hundreds of vacant commands have the ability to cause chaos in the US military, and let’s be clear, that chaos causes death in a business of life and death.

A letter to the American people was issued in the form of an op-ed by the secretaries of the Navy, Air Force and Army in the Washington Post this week that speaks to the seriousness of the issue.

The NFL season is upon us. That means that the annual blossom of performative patriotism and jingoism has begun. No doubt crowds of 80,000 Americans will cheer wildly at servicemen and women, waving 100 yard-long flags as fighter jets fly overhead, while having utter disinterest and complete apathy towards the lives and families of the people they are cheering.

Now some may say that is a bit harsh, but is it?  Where is the outrage? There is none in evidence. I’ll say this, there are definitely days when I wish John McCain was still around to raise hell. What would his response be to this? All I can say is that I think the people who got to witness the scene when McCain would have confronted Tuberville would have been left slack-jawed and speechless for some considerable time.

Sadly, there is a lack of character in one party, and a lack of fight in the pro-democracy party. I asked an exceptional Democratic Congresswoman about this on The Warning podcast. Here is her answer:

In the end though, this shouldn’t be a political issue. At all. That it is, is tragic, and a sign of a deep corruption and decay within our government. The issue at hand is about the ability of the US Military to fight, and the dignity of our military families.

Listen to Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger talk about the impact on the spouses and children of military families who deserve more than cheap platitudes and drunken clapping for their contributions to our nation.

I think every person with a phone should call their two US senators and member of Congress and express outrage over this. You can contact the United States Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121. A switchboard operator will connect you directly with the Senate office you request. To find your representative, you can use this tool. Demand action on this very serious issue.

This isn’t democracy. It is an example of hostage-taking, and the hostages are the US Military and the American people. This nonsense must be brought to an end immediately. It is a matter of national security.