Navy secretary accuses Sen. Tuberville of 'aiding and abetting' communists with military holds over abortion

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., is "aiding and abetting" autocratic and communist regimes with his continuing hold on military nominations, the Secretary of the Navy insisted on Tuesday.

Carlos Del Toro joined a panel on CNN’s "The Lead with Jake Tapper" alongside Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall where they discussed Tuberville’s refusal to release his hold in protest of the Pentagon’s abortion policies.

Del Toro, who was born in Cuba, suggested that this action not only impacts morale in the military but empowers America’s enemies in "communist and other autocratic regimes."

"You know, Jake, for somebody, and forgive me, for someone who was born in a communist country, I would have never imagined that actually one of our own senators would actually be aiding and abetting communist and other autocratic regimes around the world," Del Toro said. "This is having a real negative impact and will continue to have a real negative impact on our combat readiness. And that’s what the American people truly need to understand."