A coalition of 11 Republican senators led by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) lambasted a proposed amendment to the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act by Senate Democrats that would require women to register with the Selective Service System, putting them at odds with even some members of their own party who voted in favor of the amendment.
The coalition urged Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed (D-RI) "in the strongest possible terms not to use this year’s NDAA to try to force America’s women to register for the military draft" in a letter on Wednesday. Revisiting a failed effort to add a similar provision to the 2022 NDAA would be "a grave mistake" and would "needlessly inject divisive social policies into important debates over our national security," the senators argued.
The Senate Armed Services Committee voted in favor of adding the provision with the support of seven committee Republicans hours after Hawley’s letter was released, leaving the Right fuming. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), an outspoken opponent of expanding the draft to women, excoriated Republicans who voted in favor of the proposal.