Shunning Tuberville is unpopular among republicans– they fear it will ask abortion a central question in the election– plan passage will require that Biden uses a ton of PC

President Joe Biden has settled on a strategy for dealing with the Alabama senator who is causing chaos at the highest levels of the Pentagon: Leave it to Republicans to fix. Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville is single-handedly blocking more than 270 military promotions over the Pentagon’s policy of paying for service members to travel to seek abortions. The monthslong hold has already left the Marine Corps without a Senate-confirmed leader for the first time in 100 years; the Army, Navy and the Joint Chiefs will be in a similar position in a matter of weeks if the issue is not resolved. Biden weighed in on the controversy on Thursday, calling Tuberville’s actions “totally irresponsible” and the confusion surrounding the Joint Chiefs “bizarre.” But the onus is on Republicans to end the standoff, he added. “I would be willing to talk to him if I thought there was any chance of him changing this ridiculous position. I expect the Republican Party to stand up and do something about it. It’s within their power to do that,” Biden told reporters in Helsinki, Finland. “It’s totally irresponsible, in my view,” Biden said. “I just think that — I mean, I’m confident that the mainstream of the Republican Party no longer — does not support what he’s doing, but they got to stand up and be counted. That’s how it ends.” Biden made public what the administration has been saying behind the scenes: The White House and the Pentagon have no plans to concede to Tuberville’s demand that the administration scrap the policy unless it’s codified into law. Instead, Biden’s team is letting Senate Republicans take the heat for Tuberville’s stance, according to a Defense Department official and Democratic lawmakers. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke by phone with Tuberville about the hold Thursday afternoon, according to a spokesperson for the senator. Tuberville initially declined a request for the meeting from Austin’s office, saying he was too busy, according to the DOD official, who was granted anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue. “Coach said he’s grateful for the cordial and productive conversation and looks forward to continuing dialogue in the near future,” according to the spokesperson, Hannah Eddins, referring to Tuberville, a former coach at Auburn University. The hold has mushroomed into a major problem for Republicans, many of whom are facing tough reelections next year. Team Biden plans to tap into voters’ anger after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, ending a constitutional right to the procedure. It was a major issue in the 2022 midterms and will be again next year, but Democrats have a strong edge over Republicans on which political party the public believes best represents their views on abortion, according to a KFF Health Tracking Poll. As Republican-held states pass restrictive measures, a variety of polls show growing public support for legalized abortion and dissatisfaction with new laws that restrict it. Three in 10 voters say they will only voted for a candidate who shares their views on abortion, and while 42 percent say the Democratic Party best represents their views on abortion, only about 26 percent say the Republican Party best represents their views. Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, are using Tuberville’s move to challenge Republicans’ reputation as strong on national defense as a parade of generals and admirals has testified that the procedural hold is hurting the nation. “The problem is a Republican problem. It’s up to Sen. Tuberville’s party to make clear that he is harming national security and needs to put a stop to this,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told reporters Wednesday. “What Sen. Tuberville is doing undermines the defense of the United States of America. That is not a legitimate political back-and-forth. This is about our security, and we cannot afford this kind of hostage-taking. Our government cannot function.” Jim Manley, a Democratic strategist and 21-year veteran of the Senate, said the issue is a political winner for Democrats. “It’s an insult to the military that [Tuberville] claims to love, and it raises the specter of abortion once again, which is proven to be a politically a loser for moderate Republicans,” he said. “This is going to be the gift that keeps on giving. To be clear, Democrats would like to figure out a way to get these nominees confirmed, but you can’t reward a hostage taker like this by giving into his demands.” The DOD official said Pentagon leaders are continuing to meet with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle about the travel policy and Tuberville’s hold. But at this point, the person said, it’s up to the Senate “to decide the path forward.” Tuberville also said he’s not budging. His position is that the administration policy violates the law, and he won’t relent until the Pentagon ends the policy or Democrats codify it.