Veterans are an inconvenience for our government. When they have done their duty they don’t go away. Supportive programs and benefits have to be funded and administered, something Washington has trouble with. This is good for both of our political parties. They know opportunity when they see it. It is not good for America’s heroes.
Bipartisan agreement: veterans are political tools.
Our two parties don’t agree on much, but there is bipartisan agreement on one thing: veterans are useful political tools. Democrats claim to be worried they are suffering at the hands of Republicans:
These heroes do not deserve to be used as political pawns by the House Republicans as they look to fulfill their obsession with defunding Obamacare and cutting entitlements.1
Republicans blame Democrats:
Since the Senate won’t negotiate, the House passed eight other measures over the last few days to fund critical services – veterans’ benefits, cancer research, emergency and disaster recovery, paychecks for our National Guard and Reserve, nutrition assistance for low-income women and children, and more.2
The shutdown created a tacit, bipartisan agreement that veterans suddenly matter. Did they matter before the crisis?
How do veterans fare when they aren’t being used as political pawns?
Washington had its fun closing war memorials and laying blame in the headlines, but politicians found even better fodder when benefits for the families of veterans were threatened. Ignoring the obvious question of why the government doesn’t have measures in place to make sure this type of injustice doesn’t happen, did our government care about veterans before they were used as part of Congress’s shutdown antics?
The backlog of disability claims is an old embarrassment that speaks to what we are about to experience with Obamacare. The VA boasts that it will process claims within 125 days by 2015,3 one of those good enough for government goals. 66% of claims were backlogged in August 2012.4 Pending claims averaged 254 days and it took 260 days to finish a claim after a decision was reached.5
Ex-servicemembers find appreciation is short-lived.
Before Americans became jaded over high recessionary unemployment both parties used servicemembers as political tools for their blame game over jobs. Unemployment and homelessness is a problem for veterans and despite the money dumped into education benefits, servicemembers who become students have problems with the government:
Student veterans face multiple challenges pursuing their education, but the problems with the VA’s administration of its education benefit programs create financial challenges that negatively impact academic success.6
Commander-in-Chief distances himself from a national disgrace.
With benefits at risk, the White House put some distance between our Commander-in-Chief and our newest national disgrace. This announcement was slapped up on the Department of Veterans Affairs website:
The President, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the administration strongly believe that a lapse in appropriations should not have occurred on October 1, 2013, and Congress should act to fund critical Government operations.7
A more objective GAO report summed up the real problem:
Collectively, a lack of leadership, oversight, resources, and collaboration has contributed to the departments’ inability to fully resolve problems facing recovering servicemembers and veterans.8
Government doesn’t care about its poster children.
Children are the only group more abused than veterans when politicians go hunting for political tools. By now we should have learned that government doesn’t care about its poster children whether they are veterans, children, or the elderly. Once they have served their purpose they fade into the background until the time comes for them to be useful again.
Perhaps Americans need to be punished so the administration can make sure no one loses out the next time the government shuts down. The president has already assumed powers reserved for Congress and the Supreme Court. Why not the Treasury, too?
Talking about useful tools, can anyone tell me why voter registration is a part of the Obamacare enrollment process. The voter registration seems to be a way of getting illegals free healthcare, but their votes are also being bought by this act. How can any political party keep a straight face with this type of nonsense?
Anyone who refuses to negotiate, is one who wants to be a “DICTATOR”, which appears to be the current situation. Do you voters realize what is happening to your country?
Good enough for government doesn’t mean good enough to get the job done. If federal agencies were more efficient there would be no reason to keep spending to improve them.
It is a disgrace the manner in which our military and their families are being treated by the Obama administration. Everyone in the country should be thankful we have men and women willing to lay down their lives to protect the freedoms we enjoy, some of which are gradually being taken away by our government. The day could come when our men and women decide that under the present circumstances it is not worth fighting for our country and then where would we be.
I wonder how efficient the VA would be if they fired all of its current employees who are not vets and only hired good doctors vets to man the agency. I dare say the backlog of benefit applications would disappear or be reduced to a week or two for claims to be resolved. Further more the congress passed a payment bill before (Oct 1) to be sure that the military & vets would be paid regardless of the shutdown, but the DOD lawyers along with the DOJ lawyers (Eric the phantom Holder) gave their interpretation of the bill and stopped the payments. I wonder who told Holder what to do? If the White House, Senate Democrats and the Rino Republicans don’t get their act together you might see what the vets can do in a peace time war. Just look at DC on this past weekend. It’s time for the real Americans to speak up and demand action on the debt and government spending of money we do not have. Call your Senator & Congressman and put a clear message as to how you feel about their service.