Manchin Stalls Biden Veterans Affairs Nominee Over Abortion Policy: Report 

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has stalled President Joe Biden's Veterans Affairs general counsel nominations for over a year as a form of protest against the agency's abortion policy, according to Politico sources.

In a similar move to Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Al., who is blocking military nominations as a form of protest against the Department of Defense's funding of abortion health care, Manchin is making a stance against the Department of Veterans Affairs' abortion policies, which include counseling and abortions in life-threatening cases, or instances like incest or rape.

Manchin has blocked the nomination of Anjali Chaturved, a top Department of Justice lawyer.

Republicans have cited a 1992 law that keeps the State from providing abortion care to veterans as a reason for the block.

Manchin has not said if he opposes Chaturved's nomination, but his voice is crucial for the committee to nominate her since Democrats only have a one-seat majority.

“Senator Manchin [has] made clear that the VA’s current abortion policy is a blatant violation of federal law and he continues to urge the Administration to restore the commonsense protections we’ve had in place for decades to ensure federal dollars cannot be used to fund abortions,” a Manchin spokesperson told Politico.