EXCLUSIVE: The Biden campaign is seizing on former President Trump’s campaign event with Sen. Tommy Tuberville as an opportunity to the leading GOP contender on national security, while slamming the “MAGA playbook” as “extreme” and one that puts “military readiness at risk.”
Trump is set to address the Alabama Republican Party Friday night at the ALGOP’s annual Summer Dinner event, alongside Sen. Tuberville, R-Ala., and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey.
But the Biden campaign is using the dinner to slam Trump and Tuberville.
“No one is shocked to see Donald Trump endorse Tommy Tuberville’s reckless political antics that put our military readiness at risk,” Biden campaign spokesperson Kevin Munoz told Fox News Digital. “If Donald Trump cared about America’s national security, he’d join the overwhelming majority of Americans who oppose Tuberville’s blockade of military promotions.”
“But this is the MAGA playbook: play political games no matter the cost,” Munoz continued. “And in the egregious case of Senator Tuberville, they compromise our military readiness and stand in the way of women who want to make their own health care decisions.”
Munoz added: “Donald Trump and Senator Tuberville’s priorities are clear: they’re more concerned with their extreme agenda than with actually governing and protecting this nation.”
DONALD TRUMP TO SPEAK AT THE ALABAMA REPUBLICAN PARTY SUMMER DINNER IN AUGUST
Responding, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told Fox News Digital:
“Crooked Joe Biden should answer to the disgusting and abhorrent way he pulled out of Afghanistan and left Americans for dead, the most embarrassing moment in our country’s history,” Cheung said. “His action made America weak, less safe, and emboldened terrorists around the world. Biden left $85 billion worth or equipment, all for the Taliban to use against us and our allies.”
Cheung added: “He should get his own house in order because he’s affirming how truly moronic and idiotic he is.”
The back-and-forth comes as Tuberville has moved to hold up President Biden’s Department of Defense nominees over what he said was the Pentagon’s illegal policy of providing travel expense reimbursement, as well as paid time off, for those service members and their families receiving abortions.
In the wake of last year’s Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the Pentagon has said it would fly service members to different states in order to access abortion services if needed, while the VA announced it would start performing abortions in limited cases.
Tuberville, called those decisions a “shameful” attempt to use national security resources to pursue a far-left agenda.
Earlier this year, Tuberville said that when the Pentagon briefed senators on its decision, it insisted that the ruling overturning of Roe v. Wade that handed abortion back to the states would have “extreme impacts” on military readiness. But in the briefing, the Pentagon said an average of about 20 abortions per year are performed among service members.
“This isn’t about readiness, it’s about politics,” Tuberville said at the time.
In recent months, the Biden administration has accused Tuberville of hurting military recruitment and retention.
In a Fox News Digital article last month, Tuberville argued that Democrats are the ones jeopardizing the military readiness by pushing a progressive agenda and politicizing the military.