Bush says one thing, does another for veteran's

,A lie told often enough becomes the truth" Vladimir Lenin

The President claimed "we're proud of your service, we're grateful for the example you have set for America." A new report shows that more than half a million veterans are going without health care benefits owed to them, some don,t know they are owed disability benefits from their service- and the Bush administration has tried to keep those veterans in the dark. In 2002, VA officials were ordered by the Bush administration "to cease efforts to enroll new patients into its health care system." The directive said it was "inappropriate" for local VA workers to attend health fairs, open houses and community meetings to educate veterans about their eligibility and to enroll them in health care programs. Major veterans groups have called his policies a "disgrace" and noting his most recent budget falls $2.6 billion short of what is needed this year alone. The President also raised premiums that veterans pay for their prescription drugs.

Last year, while troops were at war, the president proposed slashing $1.5 billion from military family housing and tried to "roll back recent modest increases" in bonuses paid to soldiers serving in combat zones. Meanwhile, the president refused to extend the child tax credit to one million children living in military and veteran families. Congressional Quarterly reported on February 4th that Bush's own Secretary for Veterans Affairs told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that the president rejected a desperate request for $1.2 billion in funding needed for veterans' health care. Many lawmakers said the president's decision "only proved the administration's disinterest in supporting veterans' programs." The Veterans of Foreign Wars issued a statement in the Army Times after receiving the White House's budget, saying it was a "disgrace and a sham."

In an exclusive prime-time interview, President Bush told ABC News that, "We're doing everything we can to protect the troops, and it's important for their loved ones to understand that." As many as 30,000 soldiers were sent to Iraq without body armor and are being forced to use "Vietnam-era flak jackets" that provide insufficient protection from shrapnel and bullets. Military families across the country have been so concerned about the president's negligence, that many have felt forced to raise the $1,400 personally to pay for their loved one to have the armor. The president still refused to adequately fund body armor needs in his massive $87 billion war spending bill. At a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. John Warner (R-VA) told the administration that its body armor funding shortage was "totally unacceptable." And while Congress ultimately filled the funding gap left by the president, the president's delay and foot dragging caused a serious delay while some of our loved ones were not protected. As the U.S. Army reports, the new armor only started getting to Iraq by the end of December~easily nine months since some of our troops were sent to Iraq. A similar story concerning inadequate safety precautions can be said about the lack of armor in the vehicles used by our military personnel.

Probably the greatest injustice being done to our fighting men and women is sending them to a country that doesn,t want them, where hostility to them as an occupying force is intense, and where they cannot determine who the enemy is. Where Iraqis motivated by patriotism are now regarded as terrorists because the country has, as many predicted long ago, become a virtual training camp and enlistment incentive for our enemies. Where our men and women are put in a position that in order to survive they have to kill innocent people and worry about the results later. Make no mistake about it; the job of the fighting women and men is to do what their commander in chief orders them to do and then to come home safely to their loved ones. It is the commander in chief,s responsibility not to send them into harm,s way without clear-cut goals, exit strategies, and proper safety equipment.

Two years ago, President Bush said, "Veterans are a priority for this administration… and that priority is reflected in my budget." But, a year ago, when he had a chance to approve an emergency funding bill that included $275 million for medical care for veterans, he said, "We'll spend none of it." The evidence is clear, what the President says and what he does are diametrically opposed.

He says he supports the military, but he makes every effort to cut needed funding. He says he supports our veterans but he cuts eligibility for insurance and health care for veterans and their families. He says our service men and women are a priority, but he sends them into harms way for a dubious cause without necessary safety equipment. More and more military personnel and their families are becoming disenchanted with their commander-in-chief's "bring it on" rhetoric. Never mind that according to one veterans group that on any given night there is somewhere in the neighborhood of 500,000 veterans among the homeless in America. Who is addressing this important issue? Not our commander-in-chief. Apparently he feels that by saying he supports our veterans and fighting personnel often enough, it must be true.

David R. James

Eureka, MT