Joe Biden and his administration keep hiding from questions about the legality of a new rule that forces taxpayers to fund abortions through the Department of Veterans Affairs.
On Monday, U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, sent a fourth request for information to the administration after his previous letters about the abortion expansion went unanswered, Townhall reports.
“As a Member of [the Senate Veterans’ Affairs] Committee, with a duty to provide oversight of services to veterans, taxpayer funding, and effective legislation, I reject the notion that VA can intentionally withhold this information from Congress,” Tuberville wrote to VA Secretary Denis McDonough.
The senator and others say the new rule violates a 1992 federal statute that prohibits taxpayer funding for abortions in the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Biden administration recently implemented it anyway.
First introduced in September, the rule requires taxpayers to fund abortions for undefined and presumably broad “health” reasons for military veterans and their beneficiaries. It also requires VA hospitals to abort unborn babies under the rule “regardless of state restrictions.”
Tuberville said the Biden administration’s implementation of the rule and lack of transparency are “deeply” concerning.
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In the letter to VA Secretary McDonough, the senator said he sent three previous requests for information about the rule on Sept. 21, Feb. 15 and March 15, according to the report.
“As of today, I still have not received answers to my questions,” Tuberville wrote. “… I should not have to remind you that Congress is exempt from HIPPA privacy laws; regardless, the information I have requested is wholly quantifiable in nature and does not require private health or personal identifiable information be disclosed.”
According to Townhall, he asked the department how many abortions have been done at VA medical facilities under the new rule and how many qualified for the broad “health exception.” He also requested a copy of the training materials that have been provided to VA staff to help them determine what abortions are allowed.
Additionally, Tuberville said he wants information about the types of abortions performed and the estimated gestational ages of the unborn babies, the states where the abortions took place, and the amount of money that has been spent so far.
The senator also asked the department to provide the number of VA employees who have asked not to participate in abortions for moral or religious reasons and if their requests were granted.
Tuberville has been leading efforts to protect taxpayers and unborn babies in Congress. He recently introduced a Senate resolution to block the rule, but it narrowly failed in a 48-51 vote on April 19, with one Democrat supporting and two Republicans opposing the resolution.
For the past few months, Tuberville also has been boldly opposing Biden’s new pro-abortion Department of Defense policy by blocking Pentagon nominees until the administration reverses it. The policy requires taxpayers to pay travel costs and paid time off for military service members and their families to abort their unborn babies.
Recently, 18 state attorneys general also sued the Biden administration for violating their laws protecting unborn babies under the new VA rule.
