Category: veterans

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Benghazi Politics troops veterans war

Republicans Spending More on Another Benghazi Investigation Than on Veterans

Think Progress crunched the numbers and the results are exactly what we expected.

They love war but hate the troops and veterans. Republicans in Congress are wasting more tax payers dollars on yet another Benghazi investigation, than what is appropriated for veterans care.

The House could spend up to $3.3 million in taxpayer dollars over seven months on a special committee to investigate the Sep. 2011 attacks against the American diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, more than lawmakers have appropriated for committees dedicated to investigating ethics and helping American veterans over an entire 12 month period.

A ThinkProgress analysis of House spending on its 20 permanent committees from Jan. 3, 2013 to Jan. 3, 2014 finds that since Benghazi committee’s full-year equivalent budget would be an estimated $5,657,142, its investigation will cost more than the budgets of nine other House committees:

Committee on Rules: $2,857,408
Committee on Small Business: $2,992,688
Committee on Ethics: $3,020,459
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs: $3,048,546
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: $4,389,758
Committee on House Administration: $4,600,560
Committee on Agriculture: $5,036,187
Committee on the Budget: $5,138,824
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology: $5,282,755
House Benghazi Panel: $5,657,142
Committee on Natural Resources: $6,555,829
Committee on Armed Services: $6,563,535
Committee on Education and the Workforce: $6,952,763
Committee on Homeland Security: $7,033,588
Committee on the Judiciary: $7,077,016
Committee on Foreign Affairs: $7,388,112
Committee on Financial Services: $7,394,482
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: $8,182,307
Committee on Ways and Means: $8,423,411
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform: $8,940,437
Committee on Energy and Commerce: $9,520,516

The seven House Republicans will receive a bigger share of the committee budget, $2.2 million, more than the five Democrats, who will see “just over $1 million.”

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Military Politics veterans

Military Groups Blast Republicans for Killing Veteran Benefits

Veterans organizations are not happy with U.S. Senate Republicans today, after a bill to expand health care and education programs for veterans failed to gain enough support to move forward, Reuters reports.

From Washington Post:

The measure, sponsored by Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), collapsed after failing to garner enough Republican votes to waive the VA spending cap established in a budget deal Congress and President Obama approved in December. Sanders’s office estimated that the VA legislation would have cost $20 billion over 10 years.
60 votes were needed to waive the budget rule but 41 of 45 Republicans voted against it, effectively killing the bill.

Calling it “Senate Shenanigans,” the non-profit Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America lamented senate leaders who were engaged in “procedural games.”

“It has been a winter of discontent, starting when Congress cut military retirement benefits before being pressured into reversing course,” IAVA Founder and CEO Paul Rieckhoff said in a statement. “Then earlier this week, Congress forced the Pentagon to make budget cuts that increased living costs for our service members. And now the Senate can’t pass a critical and transformative bill that includes priorities that have garnered bipartisan support for years.”

And this from the American Legion:

“I don’t know how anyone who voted ‘no’ today can look a veteran in the eye and justify that vote,” American Legion national commander Daniel M. Dellinger told WaPo. “Our veterans deserve more than what they got today.”

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Politics veterans

What Have Republicans Done For Veterans This Week? Filibustered The Veterans Bill

No one is safe from the GOP obstruction

Senate Republicans used a filibuster to prevent a vote on expanded veterans benefits after Democrats blocked efforts to add an amendment on Iran sanctions.

The vote Thursday was 56-41 in favor of a bill by Sen. Bernie Sanders, Ind-Vt., to — among other things — expand healthcare programs and provide breaks on college tuition for veterans. Sixty votes were required to overcome the filibuster, the Hill reported. Two Republican senators, Dean Heller of Nevada and Jerry Moran of Kansas, voted with the Democrats, the Capitol Hill publication said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., refused to allow an up-or-down vote on a Republican amendment that included provision for further sanctions on Iran over that country’s nuclear program.

“I hope all the veterans groups have witnessed all the contortions the Republicans have done to defeat this bill,” he said. “Shame on Republicans for bringing base politics into a bill to help veterans.”

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Politics veterans

President Obama’s Moving Update about Cory Remsbury – Video

President Obama spoke to a group of disabled veterans today in Orlando Florida, telling them about initiatives the Federal government is taking to make their lives better. All in all, it was an impressive speech, receiving many applause from those in attendance. But it was an update the President gave at the end of his speech that caused many on Twitter to declare this speech “one of his best.”

Cory Remsburg and Family

The President spoke about Cory Remsbury, an Army Ranger who almost died in an attack. President Obama spoke about how he visited Cory in the hospital over three years ago and compared that visit to seeing Cory and his family recently. The special message the President so masterfully brought home from the Cory story is that “we never give up!”

We’re sure there were some tears flowing after his story.

Watch Cory’s update below.

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basketball Boston NBA Sports veterans

The Brooklyn Nets Have To Win

Last night during the 2013 NBA Draft the Brooklyn Nets acquired the Celtics two biggest names, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett along with veteran shooter Jason Terry; in return the Boston Celtics got three first round picks (’14, ’16, and ’18), Kris Humphries (expiring contract), Gerald Wallace, Kris Joseph, Marshon Brooks, and Keith Bogans. Here’s a minute to let that all sink in.

The pressure is on for new Nets coach Jason Kidd

Right minute over, you alright? Looking at this trade it shows that the Brooklyn Nets have no problem with being way over the cap, love to be a center of attention, and have fully embraced the “win now” mind set. Overall their starting five: Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Brook Lopez, is pretty strong looking. With Paul Pierce they fill their need at Small Forward, with Kevin Garnett they bring a tested player and veteran into the locker room, lastly with Jason Terry they bring more perimeter shooting.

Will Brooklyn hoist a NBA Championship banner soon? Unlikely.

The trade puts Brooklyn in a tough position for the next few seasons. This team is walking into the 2013-2014 season with a new inexperienced coach, aging roster, weak bench, and as a whole way over the cap and into the luxury tax. If you ever wanted to see a team pull a “all or nothing” move, you’re looking at it. Brooklyn clinched 4th seed in the East last season and lost to an undermanned Chicago Bulls team. With the additions of Pierce, Garnett, and Terry they become more intimidating but still lack the punch teams like the Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, and Chicago Bulls have to even contend for a championship. The Brooklyn Nets are stuck at the borderline of being mediocre and being a contender this season and will be stuck there for many years to come.

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Politics veterans weekly address

President’s Weekly Address: Getting Unemployed Veterans Back To Work

The President:

Today I’m at one of Honeywell’s manufacturing facilities in Golden Valley, Minnesota, where I just announced a step that will make it easier for companies to hire returning service members who have the skills our country needs right now.  It’s another part of our effort to make sure that no American who fights for this country abroad has to fight for a job when they come home.  That’s why businesses like Honeywell are answering our challenge to hire 100,000 post-9/11 veterans and their spouses by the end of next year.  That’s why I’ve directed the government to hire over 200,000 veterans so far – because our economy needs their tremendous talent, and because millions of Americans are still looking for a job.

Right now, this country is still fighting our way back from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.  The economy is growing again, but it’s not growing fast enough.  Our businesses have created almost 4.3 million new jobs over the last twenty-seven months, but as we learned in this week’s jobs report, we’re not creating them fast enough.  And just like last year at this time, our economy faces some serious headwinds.  Gas prices are starting to come down again, but when they spiked over the last few months, it hit people’s wallets pretty hard.  The crisis in Europe’s economy has cast a shadow on our own.  And all of this makes it even more challenging to fully recover and lay the foundation for an economy that’s built to last.

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Politics veterans

New Gallop Poll has Romney Leading President Obama Among Veterans – Crazy, I Know…

A new Gallop poll reveals some very interesting findings. Mitt Romney is leading President Obama among veterans. This unbelievable poll found that among U.S. veterans, about 13% of the adult population and consisting mostly of older men, support Mitt Romney over Barack Obama for president by 58% to 34%, while non-veterans give Obama a four-percentage-point edge.

Meanwhile, President Obama is the first person to receive the Jerald Washington Memorial Founders’ Award more than once. The award is given yearly by The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, and President Obama received the award in 2009 and 2012. The President has a Five-Year Plan to End Veteran Homelessness.

Last November, Obama [also] signed the VOW to Hire Heroes Act, which provides companies with a substantial tax credit if they hire unemployed or disabled veterans. And the President has also used his executive authority to establish a national Veterans Job Bank, authorize 6-months of career counseling at locations across the country, and create My Next Move, an online database that helps connect veterans with jobs that build off their military experience.

Perhaps most importantly, President Obama, the first lady, and Dr. Jill Biden have brought public attention to the problem of veteran unemployment and the valuable skills that our service members possess. All the president and his administration have done to highlight this issue appears to have prompted employers to take a second look.

As a result of the President’s policy, the jobless rate among post-9/11 veterans — as this blog noted earlier today — fell four percent in January, from 13.1 percent in December to 9.1 percent today. This is a tremendous improvement from one year ago, when the unemployment rate for these veterans stood at about 15 percent. And the initiatives announced by President Obama today will continue to target veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, who suffer from unemployment rates significantly higher than those facing the broader veteran population.

Among other things, the President also eliminated co-payments for veterans who are catastrophically disabled (2010)

Fulfilled campaign promise to have combat troops (90,000) out of Iraq by August 31,2010 (2010)

Established a new interagency task force to assist veterans owning small businesses(2010)* Note: The efforts include promoting federal contract opportunities, improve access to loans and capital, mentor assistance programs, etc.

Signed The Families of Fallen Heroes Act, which covers the moving costs of immediate family members of those lost in service (military, intelligence, and security personnel)(2010)

So why are veterans supporting Romney – a man who joked that homeless veterans should “milk cows” to get milk for their nourishment? Beats me, but Republicans have an amazing propaganda machine, a machine that is willing to lie to the people of America to put a Republican in control.

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Politics veterans weekly address

President Obama Addresses Jobs For Veterans – Video

President Obama used his weekly address to ask Congress to “put partisanship aside,” and pass his jobs bill that would put America’s veterans back to work. “Today, more than 850,000 veterans remain unemployed,” the president said. “And too many are struggling to find a job worthy of their talents and experience.”

He continued.

That’s not right.  We ask these men and women to leave their families and their jobs and risk their lives to fight for our country.  The last thing they should have to do is fight for a job when they get home.

The President again, made his pledge to the men and women of our armed services.

As Commander-in-Chief, I want every veteran to know that America will always honor your service and your sacrifice – not just today, but every day.  And just as you fought for us, we’re going to keep fighting for you – for more jobs, for more security, for the opportunity to keep your families strong and America competitive in the 21st century.

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