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James Talent @ Heritage Foundation Examines Webb's GI Bill Amendment

Submitted by GOP_Rebel on Tue, 06/17/2008 - 11:44
in

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? 

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Comments

GI Bill shows why Republican leadership are idiots

Submitted by superdestroyer on Tue, 06/17/2008 - 12:07.

If the Democratic party supported GI Bill is bad, then why haven't the Republicans proposed an alternative with much higher pay for active duty personnel, with better benefits, with family benefits, and with the moderationization funds.

The Republican leadership is apparently too lazy and too incompetent to do anything other than earmark pork funds for their own districts. When will conservatives get rid of the current Republican leadership and find individuals willing to do the work and put in the effort?

Yes, you would think

Submitted by GOP_Rebel on Tue, 06/17/2008 - 13:05.

that they would follow the prescription for success outlined in their objections to the Democratic GI Bill Amendment.  I think we're all asking exactly the same question as you are:

When will conservatives get rid of the current Republican leadership and find individuals willing to do the work and put in the effort?

There is only one problem with providing a ready answer to that question, and that is having an actual pool of individuals available who are "willing to do the work" and "put in the effort".  Case in point - in my State Senate district, the candidate did not step up to serve, he was drafted to do so by the Republican Party in lieu of anyone else.  When opportunity came a-knocking, no one in my district wanted to step up to the plate and answer it. 

I don't have all the answers, only theories.  One of my theories is that in this environment, the DNC and their media minions, aided by the phenomenally poor behavior of some Republicans in office, have propagandized the public to possess completely hostility toward the "Imperialist, war-mongering, lying, thieving, whoring, Constitution-trashing" Republicans that any honest, hard working, service-minded invididual of the GOP persuasion would have to possess nerves of steel, a solid gold resume, a saintly character nurtured toward the goal of holding public office from approximately the 2nd grade onward, and of course the right pedigree, university, references, career experience,  public speaking skills (if only), and conservative credentials to survive the most cursory vetting from their own constituents.  If asked to run for office and serve the great public good....would you?