Military Funding

Sen. Jim Webb's GI Bill Amendment poses these three concerns:

1) It defers costs to future Congresses, and increases benefits without increasing pay.
2) It hurts retention by encouraging troops to leave military service.
3) It lacks modernization funding for the military.

How big a policy issue will this be between McCain and Obama in their debates?  Look at the list of organizations that are allegedly supporting Webb's bill:

• Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
• The Veterans of Foreign Wars
• The American Legion
• The Military Officers' Association of America
• Vietnam Veterans of America
• AMVETS
• The Air Force Sergeants Association
• The Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States
• The Student Veterans of America
• Disabled American Veterans
• The American Association of Community Colleges
• The National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges
• The Partnership for Veterans' Education
• The American Council on Education
• Association of Independent Colleges and Universities

And compare these All-American red-blooded institutions (using that term loosely in regard to colleges and universities, of course) to the evil, Machiavellian entities allegedly opposing it:

• The Heritage Foundation
• Senator McCain
• President Bush
• [Sic] "About half the Republican Party"

After you watch:

Then check out the opposition in TPM's 5/12 article Obama Hits McCain for Failing to Support Webb's GI Bill. 

Democrat Talking Points:  While most everyone, especially Presumptive President Obama, "respect John McCain's service to his country," McCain basically lost his marbles in Vietnam, abandoned (fill in the blank) numbers of POW's/MIA's to their fate, and continues to throw Iraq and Afghanistan vets under the bus with his refusal to back the modernization of veterans' benefits put forth by the patriot and Vietnam vet of sound mind and policy, Jim Webb. 

Republican Talking Points: (getting far less air and blog time, and certainly not playing to the crowd) Webb has crafted a diabolically brilliant Trojan Horse strategy to help elect Democrats, undemine military retention rates, impede the development of a professional military class, keep active duty military personnel down as a miserably low-paid underclass, prevent funding for active duty personnel to achieve a safer, more modernized military and plant a financial time bomb for average Americans (including vets) to pay for it all in the future, long after President Obama and his Democratic Majority minions are elected. 

Marketing is everything.  Is it not?