Senate Blocks Bid to End VA Rule Allowing Taxpayer-Funded Abortions

Two Republican senators voted with Democrats to dash an effort by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., to eliminate a policy by the Department of Veterans Affairs that uses taxpayer funds to pay for abortions.

In a 51-48 vote Wednesday, the Senate stopped the resolution introduced by Tuberville from advancing to a final vote. Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted with the Democrats. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia was the only Democrat to vote to advance the resolution.

In looking for ways around the Supreme Court’s ruling last year overturning Roe v. Wade and ending a federal right to an abortion, the Biden administration in September changed a rule to allow veterans who receive health care through the VA to receive abortions and abortion counseling at VA facilities.

In December, Tuberville and U.S. Reps. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., and Mike Bost, R-Ill., announced a joint bicameral resolution to rescind the VA’s rule change. The House has yet to vote on the measure, but President Joe Biden promised to veto it had it advanced out of Congress.

Tuberville said on the Senate floor Wednesday the VA had been prohibited from providing abortions at its facilities through the bipartisan Veterans Health Care Act of 1992.

“Last I heard, that is a federal law, passed by this body,” he said. “Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to pay for abortions. Especially not when this was done without anybody taking a vote in this building. Especially not when Congress voted to make it illegal 30 years ago. It’s illegal and it’s wrong.”

Newsmax reached out to Tuberville’s office for comment. Manchin said in a statement on his website that taxpayers should not bear the burden of paying for abortions.

“The VA’s current policy is a blatant violation of federal law,” he said. “… This rule exceeds the VA’s statutory authority and is another example of the Biden administration’s growing pattern of prioritizing a political agenda over Constitutional processes. I always have and always will fight to maintain the commonsense protections we’ve had in place for decades to ensure federal tax dollars cannot be used to fund abortions.”

Carol Tobias, president of the National Right to Life Committee, condemned the Senate vote.

“The Biden administration once again pushes unlimited abortion paid for with taxpayer dollars,” Tobias said in a statement on the organizations’ website. “The day after Americans finalized and filed their taxes, with some paying a tax bill with hard-earned funds, Democrats voted to continue to send those monies to support unlimited abortion at the VA.

“National Right to Life thanks Senator Tommy Tuberville for his efforts to try to block the Biden administration’s latest shameless promotion of abortion.”

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