President Donald Trump’s executive order that ended the use of taxpayer dollars “to fund or promote elective abortion” will change how female military service pursue getting the procedure.
The Pentagon reversed the Department of Defense’s abortion policy implemented by the Biden administration. This meant that the government would no longer fund the travel of service members who needed to cross state lines to perform an abortion. The policy change went into effect immediately after it was announced last week, according to Military Times.
Previously, under the Biden administration, those in the military who sought to get an abortion out of state were reportedly granted travel stipends and up to three weeks of administration leave. It was deemed a necessity by the former administration after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. That decision returned the legality of abortion to the states, which resulted in some prohibiting the practice. Depending on the state in which a female service member was stationed, abortion may have been illegal. This meant she would have to travel to get the procedure.
The Trump administration changed all of that with its directive last Thursday. It was a policy shift celebrated by many congressional Republicans, including Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).
“For the past two years, I have been sounding the alarm about the Pentagon’s illegal and immoral practice of using taxpayer dollars to fund abortions,” Tuberville said. “The Biden administration treated taxpayers like their own personal piggy bank that they could use to bankroll their woke agenda. President Trump and Secretary Hegseth affirmed today what I’ve been fighting for since I got to Washington: zero taxpayer dollars should go towards abortions.”
Conversely, Democrats condemned the policy change, calling it an act that showed a lack of support for military members and their families.
“At a time when we are already facing military recruitment and retention challenges, we should do all we can to assure those who answer the call to serve America that we will do everything in our power to support them and their families,” Senate Democrats said in a released statement.
“Instead, this extreme action does the opposite and sends a message to servicewomen — who make up more than 17% of our military’s active duty — that they are not as valuable as their male counterparts.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Democrats did not elaborate or explain how eliminating travel stipends to get abortions devalued female service members. No equivalent or other kinds of government-funded travel benefits for procreation purposes are known to be available for male service members.
Furthermore, despite Democrats’ opposition, data revealed that the travel stipends for abortion were not a popular program utilized by those in the military, reported Military Times. Between June and December 2023, there were only 12 troops who used the program, according to the Pentagon.
