Josh Hawley Opposes Renaming Military Bases Named After Confederate Generals

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) said on Thursday he continues to oppose renaming military bases and installations named after Confederate generals.

“I opposed this amendment, spoke against it, and voted no in the committee. Congress should not be mandating renaming of our bases and military installations,” Hawley wrote Thursday morning:

I opposed this amendment, spoke against it, and voted no in the committee. Congress should not be mandating renaming of our bases and military installations https://t.co/uOYvCT8U2O

— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) June 11, 2020

Hawley’s comment follows after the Senate Armed Services Committee voted on Wednesday to require the Department of Defense (DOD) to rename military bases and other areas named after Confederate generals.

The committee-adopted amendment to the Defense policy legislation would give the DOD three years to remove the names of Confederate generals from military installations.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) offered the amendment.

“It’s long past time to end the tribute to white supremacy on our military installations,” Warren wrote on Tuesday:

As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I filed an amendment to the annual defense bill last week to rename all bases named for Confederate generals. It's long past time to end the tribute to white supremacy on our military installations. https://t.co/eP6ktRWK8C

— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) June 9, 2020

Warren’s amendment would have significant implications for large military bases, such as Fort Bragg in North Carolina and Fort Benning in Georgia, which are both named after Confederate generals.

President Donald Trump swiftly came out against the move to rename America’s military bases.

…history of Winning, Victory, and Freedom. The United States of America trained and deployed our HEROES on these Hallowed Grounds, and won two World Wars. Therefore, my Administration will not even consider the renaming of these Magnificent and Fabled Military Installations…

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 10, 2020

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said during a press conference on Wednesday that the president will not sign the defense policy bill if it contains the amendment to rename the country’s military bases.

“Fort Bragg, for example, it’s one of the largest military installations. It’s home to tens of thousands of brave American soldiers, and when you think of Fort Bragg, we think of the brave soldiers that deployed from there,” McEnany said.

Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.