Bush Threatens Veto Over Troop Pay Raise, Military Widow Benefits

[babylonsister]

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/05/17/bush-military-veto/

Bush Threatens Veto Over Troop Pay Raise, Military Widow Benefits

The Bush administration today threatened to a veto a House defense spending bill over a 3.5 percent pay raise for U.S. soldiers and a $40/month increase in benefits for military widows, among other provisions. The legislation passed the House today 397-27.

ThinkProgress noted last night that the White House opposed the pay raise for troops:

Troops don’t need bigger pay raises, White House budget officials said Wednesday in a statement of administration policy laying out objections to the House version of the 2008 defense authorization bill. <…>

The slightly bigger military raises are intended to reduce the gap between military and civilian pay that stands at about 3.9 percent today. Under the bill, HR 1585, the pay gap would be reduced to 1.4 percent after the Jan. 1, 2012, pay increase.

Bush budget officials said the administration “strongly opposes” both the 3.5 percent raise for 2008 and the follow-on increases, calling extra pay increases “unnecessary.”

The White House says it also opposes:

– a $40/month allowance for military survivors, saying the current benefits are “sufficient”

– additional benefits for surviving family members of civilian employees

– price controls for prescription drugs under TRICARE, the military’s health care plan for military personnel and their dependents

House Minority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) said today he was “shocked and disappointed in the President’s threat,” noting that Bush’s problems with the bill are over measures that benefit “the very people who sacrifice the most in the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and who serve at home and overseas.”

UPDATE: VoteVets chairman and Iraq veteran Jon Soltz adds:

Believe me, even with the current benefits that get paid out by the Department of Defense and insurance that many troops buy into, those who lose spouses in Iraq aren’t sleeping in mounds of cash. The increase proposed by Democrats will mean a hell of a lot. At VoteVets.org, we’ve heard absolute horror stories on the type of cutbacks that widows and widowers have had to make because the government doesn’t provide enough to those who lose a loved one in war.

[sniffa]

1. he's the commander in chief

he makes the decisions.

fuck you vets, and your widows too.

support the oops. :puke:

[BOSSHOG]

thanks to bush that 40 buck rise in benefits for widows

would be totally consumed by his oil buddies. I am just totally overwhelmed by this awesome display of conservative compassion.

[Captain Hilts]

2. Wow, an extra $40/mo. Paris for the weekend! nt

[happyslug]

8. Yes, Paris TX, provided you sleep in your car and you are from Houston

n/t

[Sapere aude]

3. Support the troops means putting a magnet on your car, nothing else.

Even the money for the magnets doesn't go to the troops.

[Disturbed]

4. How can this Asshole Busholini keep saying how much he

supports the "Troops"? He is a hypocritical Silverspoon Sociopath that's how.

[fooj]

5. Why doesn't he just say...

"Thanks for the billions...NOW watch this drive and GET LOST!"

Treasonous rat bastard...

[atreides1]

6. You know what I want

I want the names of the 27 SOB's who voted against this bill and for someone to question them about it, that's what I want!!!!!!

[cosmicdot]

16. here's the list

My guess is that the raise wasn't the gating issue for those 27. I would further suggest that they support a raise.

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Submitted by Bob Fertik on May 16, 2007 - 12:00pm.

* OutOfIraq

Within the next 24 hours, your representative will vote on:
* allowing the U.S. to build additional military bases in Iraq; and
* helping to prevent a war with Iran.

These votes will come as part of the debate on the defense authorization bill (H.R. 1585), which the House will complete action on in the next two days. The votes on these amendments could come at any time today or tomorrow (Wednesday or Thursday).


Background

The defense authorization bill is the main bill establishing parameters of defense policy, approving specific federal programs proposed by the president, and setting general guidelines on how much money can be spent on those programs.

The House Rules Committee severely restricted the amendments that members could offer on this legislation. For example, the committee prohibited votes on measures that FCNL supports: restoring habeas corpus rights and requiring the U.S. to engage in direct, face-to-face talks with Syria and Iran as part of a larger diplomatic effort to end the fighting in Iraq.

http://www.democrats.com/house-votes-on-iraq-bases-and-iran-war
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I believe this is the correct vote:


H R 1585 RECORDED VOTE 17-May-2007 12:48 PM
QUESTION: On Passage
BILL TITLE: National Defense Authorization Act

Ayes Noes PRES NV
Democratic 202 25 4
Republican 195 2 4
Independent
TOTALS 397 27 8

Title: To authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2008 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes.


Sponsor: Rep Skelton, Ike (by request) (introduced 3/20/2007) Cosponsors (1)
Related Bills: H.RES.403
Latest Major Action: 5/16/2007 House floor actions. Status: Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union rises leaving H.R. 1585 as unfinished business.
House Reports: 110-146, 110-146 Part 2 COSPONSORS(1), ALPHABETICAL : (Sort: by date)


Rep Hunter, Duncan - 3/20/2007


NOES 27 ---

Baldwin
Blumenauer
Capuano
Conyers
Delahunt
Duncan
Ellison
Frank (MA)
Jackson (IL)
Kucinich
Lee
Lewis (GA)
Markey
McDermott
McNulty
Michaud
Miller, George
Moore (WI)
Olver
Paul
Serrano
Stark
Tierney
Waters
Watson
Watt
Woolsey

---- NOT VOTING 8 ---

Baird
Cubin
Davis, Jo Ann
Engel
Harman
Jones (OH)
McMorris Rodgers
Shays

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll373.xml


http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:HR01585:@@@P

[Imagevision]

7. Bush would never veto a Troop Pay Raise, Military Widow Benefits

he just isn't that stupid, besides, Cheney said he can't go there!

[rodeodance]

9. I have always said he does not have a heart--He does not care about

people in general.

[Grandrose]

10. The Commander Guy!

The compassionate conservative at his best!:eyes:

[Johonny]

11. I suggest he not

stand in front of a bunch of troops for his photo-op veto of this.

[ChicagoRonin]

12. DONT'T LET THIS NEWS DIE

E-mailing and re-posting isn't enough. Print it out; send it to churches; post it at your local Veterans Affairs office; drop it off at suburban Army-Navy surplus stores. Make sure all those allegedly pro-military types know that this is what the President means by "support the troops".

[sheerjoy]

13. May (my) God forgive me....

I hate that man more every day.

[dogday]

14. K&R

This is wrong....

[Vidar]

15. Way to support the troops, asshole!

[noiretextatique]

17. "unnecessary"...

that would be your WAR, asshole :nuke:

[Warren Stupidity]

18. Keep up the good work dumbfuck!

Please send this idiot more good legislation full of popular programs for him to veto. Make it absolutely clear that this country needs a Democrat in the White House and a Democratic majority, a working Democratic majority, in both houses of congress.

[Selatius]

19. More money for the war machine, less money for human beings caught in the war machine/meatgrinder.