Today, the Republican Study Committee (RSC) Steering Committee adopted a position in support of Representative Beth Van Duyne’s amendment to this year’s NDAA:

The RSC Steering Committee supports consideration and passage of the Van Duyne Amendment to H.R. 8070, the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025.

This amendment would prohibit taxpayer funding from carrying out Biden’s unlawful DoD abortion policy issued on October 20, 2022, which requires taxpayer funding to cover expenses related to abortion, such as travel or leave, in clear violation of historic bi-partisan norms and current law.

Chairman Kevin Hern (OK-01) said, “President Biden has failed as commander-in-chief both on the world stage and by forcing his woke agenda on our heroic military personnel and the American taxpayers who provide for our common defense. Military funding should ensure lethality and taking care of our brave men and women in uniform, not advancing Biden’s woke social and climate agenda, including taxpayer-funded abortion.”

Rep. Beth Van Duyne (TX-24) said, "Biden’s Department of Defense is using taxpayer dollars to fund time off, lodging, and travel expenses for elective abortions, directly violating the long-standing Hyde Amendment in yet another attempt to promote abortion. My amendment will push back on President Biden’s radical pro-abortion agenda, and I’m grateful to the RSC Steering Committee for supporting my amendment to end this egregious practice. We should support expecting mothers to choose life, not incentivize elective abortion."

Background Information:

Historically, the Hyde Amendment has prohibited taxpayer funding for abortion, except in the case of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother. More specifically, current law 10 USC 1093 codifies Hyde protections for DOD funding. As a Senator and Vice President, Joe Biden supported the Hyde amendment, proudly claiming that he voted for Hyde protections nearly 50 times in the U.S. Senate, before reversing his position to appease the Left.

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