U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) has been a vocal opponent of vaccine mandates for members of the military, even speaking out about it on the floor of the Senate earlier this year.

Now the senator from Alabama is backing up his talk with legislation.

Tuberville is adding his support to two pieces of legislation, Preserving the Readiness of Our Armed Forces Act and Stop Firing Our Servicemembers Act.

“America’s military recruitment is at an all-time low, putting us further behind adversaries like China,” said Tuberville.

According to a news release, the Preserving the Readiness of Our Armed Forces Act “would prohibit the involuntary dismissal of a service member for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine until each military service achieves its authorized end strength. The legislation would also require members of the National Guard and reserves to have access to pay and benefits while requests for religious or health accommodation is pending.”

The second piece of legislation, the Stop Firing Our Servicemembers Act, would “prohibit federal funds from being used to require a member of the National Guard to receive a COVID-19 vaccination and prohibit the Department of Defense from taking any adverse action against the member for refusing vaccination,” the release said.

“We should not be jeopardizing our national security by putting more restrictions on members of our military who wish to serve,” Tuberville said. “I am proud to support legislation to bolster military readiness and support our men and women in uniform.”

Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee