The Senate on Wednesday rejected a National Defense Authorization Act that would reinstate military service members discarded for violating the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
This mandate was repealed as a component of last year’s NDAA. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) announced that his amendment was based on this repeal.
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The final count 46 votes to 53.
“The brave men and women who sign up for our military to serve their country deserve respect and support, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination status,” Cruz said in a statement earlier this year. “We have effectively worked to repeal the Department of Defense mandate on the COVID-19 vaccine from the last Congress, but the task is not done. This amendment would reinstate the corps of military workers who were wrongfully terminated due to their COVID-19 vaccination status, and would bring justice to military members who were in a differently punished for their COVID-19 vaccination status.
Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) responded Wednesday night that the amendment conflicts with two principles of the military: readiness and obedience to lawful orders.
Reed said a COVID-19 infection has affected Army personnel’s readiness for combat. He also argued that those who refused the vaccine while the order was still in effect were violating a legal order, noting that this is not the only vaccination required by the military.
Some 8,400 army workers were removed from the mandate before it was repealed.
The amendment needed 60 votes in the Senate to pass. Instead, an absolute majority voted against. The House has a narrow Democratic majority of 51 to 49, though some Democrats defected last year to repeal the mandate.
This time, some Republicans voted against the amendment, though most of the time the vote followed party lines.
“While DOD’s authoritative mandate on the COVID vaccine ended last year, we cannot leave behind the brave men and women who were unfairly fired or otherwise punished for refusing to get vaccinated,” Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) said in an earlier post this month: “These foot soldiers deserve to be healed, And our amendment would correct this historic mistake and prevent it from falling again. “
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The Senate is rushing to move forward on the NDAA, seen as must-have legislation, before the August recess.
The vote comes after the Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed amendments to the NDAA that were similar to social issues and face a tougher path in the Democratic Senate.