Seven former defense secretaries who served in administrations from both parties are warning that a Republican senator's hold on nearly 200 military promotions hurts military families and emboldens U.S. adversaries.
“There are also real-world impacts on the families of these senior officers,” the former defense secretaries wrote in a letter released Thursday by Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. “Most cannot move and resettle their families; their children cannot enroll at their next schools on time; and spouses cannot start new jobs at the next duty station. We can think of few things as irresponsible and uncaring as harming the families of those who serve our nation in uniform.”
The message is similar to ones current defense officials, including Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, have issued in recent weeks. But the letter, which was addressed to Schumer and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., raises the pressure on the senator at the center of the controversy, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., by bringing in voices from both Republican and Democratic administrations. In releasing the letter, Schumer said he hopes it encourages other Senate Republicans to push Tuberville to “drop these reckless holds.”
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The letter, which does not mention Tuberville by name, was signed by Trump administration Defense…
