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Veterans and U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler (D)

In light of the recent revelations about the deplorable conditions at Walter Reed Army Hospital and at countless VA hospitals across the country, I wanted to give credit to U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler (D), who during his 2004 congressional special election made veterans' health care his top issue, and an issue that remains dear to him and his staff. Ben was ahead of the curve in fully understanding how health care for our veterans had become another social issue with plenty of mandates, most of them unfunded or underfunded, and one which we had a moral obligation to fulfill.

During that race, Ben often warned that if we weren't living up to our VA obligations in early 2004, how could we possibly care for the wounded troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan over the long-term? At that time, American troops had suffered only 10% of the total wounded so far in the war.

With the front-page stories, congressional hearings and blue ribbon commission now underway, I was thinking about how Ben's concerns have sadly played out.

Fletcher's Shameless (And Hypocritical) Pandering

The Courier-Journal has a terrific editorial this morning on the transparent and shameless pandering that our beleaguered Governor Fletcher (R) is offering in hopes of saving his political career:

A pathetic piece of political pandering: That's what Gov. Ernie Fletcher offered voters this week.

On Tuesday, he showed up in Louisville to welcome back soldiers who had spent the last year in Afghanistan, then used the moment to propose exempting all military personnel on active duty and in the reserves from paying state taxes.

Clearly, Dr. Fletcher, who had promised to be a new kind of governor, is resorting to a very old method of getting votes: buying them.

His poll numbers are so terrible that nine candidates are taking him on. No doubt he is hoping this proposal will make him popular again -- at least at Fort Campbell, Fort Knox and various reserve facilities.

How craven was this act? A year ago, Gov. Fletcher didn't support a more modest proposal to exempt military personnel on active duty.

As bad as the above is, a source inside state government sent this to me last night:

Mark:
If Fletcher says anything during the election about how much he supports the troops, I have some info you might find interesting. 

In 2005, Rep. Marie Rader sponsored a bill to give a free KY combo hunting and fishing license to active military who served in Operation Iraqi freedom and enduring freedom.  The bill also would have given each service person 4 passes a year to a KY state park lodge or campground for overnight stay.  It was HB 441 in 2005.  Fletcher's administration fought her on this.  They didn't want her to bring it and they didn't want it to pass.  It died in the senate.  Host himself tried to talk her out of it. 

How do they live with themselves, expecting soldiers to fight and die for them, and they can't even give them such a small token of thanks.  If people only knew the truth. 

The wheels continue to come off the Fletcher-Rudolph cart...

More On Geoff Davis' (R) Backing Of Payday Loan Predators Targeting US Troops

Seems that this story is only getting bigger and now national, and one wonders how long before wing-nut Rep. Geoff Davis (R) is declared the "Worst Person In The World."

Now, Think Progress is pushing the story and asking folks to call Davis' office:

Today may be the last day to stop Davis in his tracks. Call his office now and tell him to stop enabling predatory lenders who are hurting the U.S. military.

Call now:

Davis’s office:
(202) 225-3465

Toll-free congressional switchboard (ask for Davis’s office):
(866) 808-0065

What's so frustrating is that, while we know that the Kentucky Democratic Party is broke, why aren't they working this story hard?

• Why no press release from KDP calling for action?
                       
• Why aren't they asking former Miss America and veterans' advocate, Heather French Henry, to pull together some veterans and call a press conference in the 4th Congressional District (where she was raised) and condemn what Davis is doing?
                    
• Why don't they ask retired General Wes Clark (D) to take some time from Sunday's Democratic Party rally and drive an hour north to share his thoughts on what Davis is trying to accomplish (Clark served at Ft. Knox during his military service)?

Why is something like this -- which costs nothing -- so impossible for the KDP to execute???

(For additional background on this issue, click here, here and here.)

State Treasurer Pushes Military Families' Rights (Paducah Sun)

I'm always saddened that while Republicans itch to send our troops into battle, once those soldiers come home and take off their unforms, it's most often the Democrats who work to preserve their veteran's benefits.

Along those lines, here's another Democrat -- State Treasurer Jonathan Miller -- who's making the effort to push for a "Military Families' Bill of Rights" which he says will protect those not fighting and make life easier for soldiers when they return home.

Thankfully, someone is talking about this problem.

State Treasurer Pushes Military Families' Rights
Brian Peach, Paducah Sun
Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Educating military families in how to avoid poverty and survive without a regular paycheck may start this fall, and more thorough legislation could come by January or February, Kentucky Treasurer Jonathan Miller said Monday.

Miller told the McCracken County Bar Association about his plan to enact a so-called "Military Families' Bill of Rights," which he says will protect those not fighting and make life easier for soldiers when they return home.

[...]

Miller is saying soldiers and their families need to know their rights, such as an employer's inability to legally fire a soldier if deployed. Families are included in the bill because they're more involved than they were years ago when, Miller said, it was less common for soldiers to have children, much less be married when they were deployed. "The thinking was ... If the military wanted you to have a wife, they'd issue you one," Miller said, reiterating that laws must change with the times.

His 10-part initiative — some of which would require passage of state or federal legislation — includes free financial education, health care assistance, tax relief, and protection from financial predators trying to take advantage of soldiers. He said there have been instances of life insurance policies being sold to soldiers, only to have it later realized that the policy doesn't include death in combat. Educating military families would help prevent that, he said, as would creating laws restricting home credit card solicitations to the families and lowering interest rates that money-lending institutions may charge soldiers, according to a draft of the bill.

More On American Legion Call To End Anti-War Comments By The Public

In follow-up to yesterday's post regarding the remarks made by the National Commander of the American Legion where he called for an end to all “public protests” and “media events” against the war, even though they are protected by the Bill of Rights, a reader forwarded an interesting public letter they sent to then President Bill Clinton in 1999 calling for an immediate withdrawal of troops from Yugoslavia.

It's the hypocrisy that gets me and makes me question whether the American Legion leadership is more concerned about its political posturing than protecting our troops. Shame on them.

Letter to President Clinton
May 5, 1999

Dear Mr. President:

The American Legion, a wartime veterans organization of nearly three-million members, urges the immediate withdrawal of American troops participating in "Operation Allied Force.''

The National Executive Committee of The American Legion, meeting in Indianapolis today, adopted Resolution 44, titled "The American Legion's Statement on Yugoslavia.'' This resolution was debated and adopted unanimously.

Mr. President, the United States Armed Forces should never be committed to wartime operations unless the following conditions are fulfilled:

• That there be a clear statement by the President of why it is in our vital national interests to be engaged in hostilities;
• Guidelines be established for the mission, including a clear exit strategy;
• That there be support of the mission by the U.S. Congress and the American people; and
• That it be made clear that U.S. Forces will be commanded only by U.S. officers whom we acknowledge are superior military leaders.

It is the opinion of The American Legion, which I am sure is shared by the majority of Americans, that three of the above listed conditions have not been met in the current joint operation with NATO ("Operation Allied Force'').

In no case should America commit its Armed Forces in the absence of clearly defined objectives agreed upon by the U.S. Congress in accordance with Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution of the United States.

Sincerely,
Harold L. "Butch'' Miller,
National Commander
American Legion

American Legion Wants To Limit Free Speech When It Comes To Opposing The War. Seriously

I am an enormous fan of our military veterans and feel that Republicans give them the shaft on promised benefits year in and year out, but the remarks this week by Thomas Cadmus, the American Legion's national commander, at their national convention is way over- the-top and very anti-American. I hope he retracts what he said:

The American Legion, which has 2.7 million members, has declared war on antiwar protestors, and the media could be next. Speaking at its national convention in Honolulu, the group's national commander called for an end to all “public protests” and “media events” against the war, even though they are protected by the Bill of Rights.

[...]

He explained, "No one respects the right to protest more than one who has fought for it, but we hope that Americans will present their views in correspondence to their elected officials rather than by public media events guaranteed to be picked up and used as tools of encouragement by our enemies." This might suggest to some, however, that American freedoms are worth dying for but not exercising.

Bush-Supporter Arrested In Destruction Of Soldier Memorial; Meanwhile, Democratic Leaders Rally In Louisville To Enact 'Military Families' Bill of Rights'

Interesting how there's no outcries from Bush-defenders about this disrespectful act against a memorial to fallen soldiers set-up near President Bush's Crawford, Texas ranch.  I guess they're too busy trying to destroy the reputation of a mother of a fallen Iraqi War soldier who wants to meet with the President. Hypocrites.

Army Veteran Arrested In Destruction Of Soldier Memorial
By Tommy Witherspoon Tribune-Herald staff writer
Wednesday, August 17, 2005

If a 59-year-old Speegleville man had not been arrested Monday night shortly after he reportedly destroyed a roadside memorial to fallen U.S. soldiers near President Bush's ranch, McLennan County Sheriff Larry Lynch would have known where to find him later this week – in Lynch's Sunday School class.

Sheriff's office investigators said Larry Chad Northern drove his pickup truck over hundreds of small wooden crosses bearing the names of soldiers who died in the war that peace activists had placed along Prairie Chapel Road.

Northern was arrested shortly after 9:30 p.m. Monday after he was spotted changing a tire on his pickup, authorities said. Small white crosses were found stuck in the truck's undercarriage, according to sheriff's office reports.

The memorial was set up in an area known as Camp Casey and featured American flags, crucifixes, Islamic Crescents and Stars of David affixed with the names of servicemen killed in Iraq.

At the same time in Louisville, State Treasurer Jonathan Miller along with Congressman Ben Chandler, Indiana Senator Evan Bayh and Republican State Rep. Scott Brinkman, held a press conference to announce their support of expanding rights and benefits to military personnel and their families and veterans.

Push For Military Families' Bill Of Rights
By BRUCE SCHREINER / Associated Press Writer

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- A group of state and federal officials gathered in front of a war monument Wednesday to promote a so-called "Military Families' Bill of Rights" to ensure that soldiers and their families don't suffer for their contributions to country.

The initiative calls for a "safety net" to protect military families from poverty.

"It's about doing what's right, it's about doing what's fair and it's about doing what's moral," said state Treasurer Jonathan Miller, a leading proponent of the initiative, some of which would require passage of state or federal legislation.

Miller, a Democrat, was joined by two Democratic members of Congress -- Rep. Ben Chandler, who represents Kentucky's 6th District, and Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana, as well as state Rep. Scott Brinkman, a Louisville Republican. Serving as a backdrop to the announcement was a veterans memorial next to the Jefferson County Courthouse in downtown Louisville.

Chandler said that how military families and veterans are treated will play a role in the country's ability to field a strong military in the future.

Brinkman predicted that the provisions requiring state legislation would draw bipartian support in the 2006 General Assembly, which convenes in January. "Support for our men and women in uniform ... should be always above party politics," he said.

Bayh touted his proposals that would compensate Guard and Reserve members who suffered pay cuts as a result of deployments, and to protect military families from foreclosures.

"No American should be forced to choose between doing right by our country and doing right by their families," said Bayh, a possible presidential candidate in 2008.

Among other things, the initiative calls for:

--Access to counseling for military families when a loved one is activated, deployed or killed or disabled in action.

--"Adequate" death benefits for all veterans and members and retirees of the Reserve and National Guard.

--The right to supplemental income for every Guard member or reservist called to active duty, through tax incentives to private employers and state tax deductions for active service.

--Job preferences for veterans, partly through tax incentives to private employers.

--"Reasonable" leave for spouses of service members who have been deployed.

Also, Miller's office will provide financial education and "money mentoring" to military families through private-public partnerships.

Supporters are looking at ways to generate money to create a state fund to help support military families in need, Miller said. The options include creating an income tax checkoff and a special license plate that proclaims support for the military, he said.

The initiative drew support from James Mutter, a retired Marine colonel and past president of the National Military Family Association. Mutter said that military members on duty can be at greater risk when their minds are on hardships at home.

Governor Fletcher Being Dishonest to Veterans

Imagine, if you would, Governor Fletcher deciding to reduce the numbers of jobs where minorities applicants would receive a preference. Also imagine that at the same time Fletcher states that his commitment to the minority community "is total" and his commitment to continued minority preferences in hirings "is unyielding."

Would you believe him? Of course not. He's being untruthful and deliberately misleading.

If, hypothetically, there are 1,000 jobs where members of a particular group would receive a preference, and you reduce that number to 500, it would be immoral to suggest that your committment to that group "is unyielding" based on those 500 jobs where you're still allowing preferences.

Well, that's exactly what Governor Fletcher has done to our state's veterans.

After a flurry of stories last week about Governor Fletcher's decision to "reclassify" 132 more state merit jobs which no longer require applicants to be tested, scored and ranked in the top five to be considered. Instead, the state is moving toward a method by which any applicant who meets minimum qualifications may be hired. In the testing system, veterans get 5 additional points on the 100-point scale and disabled veterans and their spouses get 10 points.

Understandably, veterans groups got very upset about Fletcher's decision to reduce the number of jobs where they would receive a preference. Media stories even noted that "during a hastily called press conference Thursday, Fletcher and others could provide little evidence that the new hiring rules include concrete preferences for veterans."

Following that fiasco, Fletcher wrote a letter to veterans to try to clear-up any confusion about the new hiring actions. However, it seems that Fletcher has made a 'bad' situation even 'worse' by outright misleading veterans and blaming 'partisan politics' for his deliberate action.

In the letter, Governor Fletcher stated:

The recent concern regarding state job classifications may have caused confusion. Be assured that my commitment to veterans’ issues and to you is unwavering. I deeply regret that partisan politics generated misinformation and misunderstanding concerning this issue. Please know that my commitment to veterans is total and my resolve to honor your service through continued veterans preference is unyielding. Preference points are legislatively mandated and were designed to ensure veterans would receive preference for classified positions. This applies to those that require a test and those that require certain training and experience. Those classifications that are 100% qualifying do not have scores, but can include the desire or need for military experience in the minimum requirements.

Let me end this post with where I started:

Imagine, if you would, Governor Fletcher deciding to reduce the numbers of jobs where minorities applicants would receive a preference. Also imagine that at the same time Fletcher states that his commitment to the minority community "is total" and his commitment to continued minority preferences in hirings "is unyielding."

Would you believe him? Of course not...