Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders sent a letter Tuesday to President Joe Biden and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin calling on them to rescind a Department of Defense policy that reimburses female service members who travel out of state to obtain abortions.
The Daily Caller first obtained a copy of the letter, which specifically mentions Colonel Dillon R. Patterson, who commanded the 188th Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard from June 2023 until his recent resignation. In the letter, Sanders criticizes the policy and calls out the Biden administration for forcing Patterson and others in the military to choose between their faith and their service to the country.
“As I expect you to be aware, on December 18, 2023, Colonel Dillon R. Patterson, Commander of the 188th Wing, announced his voluntary resignation from command of the 188th Wing of the Arkansas Air National Guard. Col. Patterson has served our country honorably for 22 years and earned numerous awards and decorations. With all Arkansans, I thank Col. Patterson for his dedicated service to our state and nation,” Sanders wrote in the letter.
“Unfortunately, Col. Patterson was forced to personally choose between either continuing his command or adhering to his sincerely held religious beliefs against abortion,” she continued. “Because he adhered first to his faith instead of overtly political mandates, he voluntarily resigned his command. I admire Col. Patterson for having the confidence of his convictions, but regret that our nation’s military will suffer the loss of a dedicated airman, leader, and guardsman as a commander.” (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders Introduces Executive Order Combatting CRT On First Day In Office)
READ THE LETTER HERE:
(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) — … by Henry Rodgers
“On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed that states may protect the lives of unborn children by appropriately regulating the practice of abortion. Arkansas, like many other states, chose to do so—protecting unborn life by prohibiting abortions which are not medical necessities for the sake of the mother,” Sanders added. “While half the country made the obvious determination that the killing of helpless, unborn children is contrary to the public interest, Secretary Austin declared that the U.S. Department of Defense … would subvert the actions of states like Arkansas by using taxpayer dollars to fund the travel, meals, and lodging associated with out-of-state servicemember travel for procurement of an abortion procedure.” (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Gov. Sarah Sanders Calls For Special Session To Introduce Legislation On Vaccine Mandates, Tax Cuts)
Sanders described the policy as “shortsighted,” noting that nearly every military branch failed to meet its 2023 recruiting goals, with the Air National Guard falling short by 40 percent. (RELATED: Biden Refuses To Lift Abortion Policy To Restore Military Ranks)
“Maybe equally as egregious, the DoD now requires that commanding officers—regardless of any sincere and deeply held religious convictions to the contrary—are forced to approve such abortion leave,” Sanders wrote. “Abortion is itself a barbaric practice. But it is apparently not enough for this administration that abortion be available in some states and regulated in others. Thus, the Defense Department must now apparently sacrifice lifelong personnel’s leadership in the name of military readiness—a laughable paradox if it were not so deeply offensive and damaging.”
The DOD responded to Sanders letter by telling the Caller:
“The Department does not have an abortion policy. The Department has a travel policy, which is in place to ensure that all of our service members – regardless of where they are stationed – have equal access to reproductive health care. Should a Commander be uncomfortable approving requests for non-covered reproductive health care, they may consult with their chain of command as to whether such requests may be referred to a higher echelon of command for approval,” Sabrina Singh, deputy press secretary for the DOD said.