troops

Here are the top stories this week related to our soldiers here and abroad, taken from the Our Troops Newsladder.

Here are the top stories this week related to our soldiers here and abroad, taken from the Our Troops Newsladder.

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing


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Some Republicans will Stoop to Any Depth, and even Sacrifice the Dignity of the Congress To Get What They want. They were used to things that way.

Yesterday the U.S. House passed the long awaited Iraq Emergency Supplemental Bill.
It’s passage puts the bill on the road to the Presidents desk in just a few days.

Now that the democrats have control of the House of representatives, the first binding congressional challenge to Bush's handling of the conflict, now in its fifth year, is about to arrive on his desk.

"Our troops are mired in a civil war with no clear enemy and no clear strategy for success," said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, as only one of the many justifications for challenging the Presidents failed leadership and dim vision.

Ok, here's the real way to help. A whole lot better than putting those yellow ribbon magnets on your car.

I'm asking everyone I know to please write your U.S. Senator in support of S-713, a bill introduced Wednesday that would require the Veterans Administration to increase inspections of military hospitals, create a timeframe for repairs and improve access to mental health services. Under the bill, the amount of paperwork that veterans must complete in order to receive disability benefits also would be simplified. The bill has bipartisan support. A companion bill will be introduced in the House within the next few days, according to Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.). The House and Senate next week will hold hearings on how the Department of Defense and the VA are caring for U.S. troops who return from war. Several legislators recently have said they will introduce bills aimed at increasing aid for veterans and their families.

I just read this heartbreaking article in Newsweek about veteran care (or lack thereof) by the Veterans Administration. As the former wife of a Vietnam veteran, I know the difficulty he went through when trying to obtain benefits; he was told that he was classified as a "peacetime" veteran because he served in the U.S. Navy on a destroyer, even though he saw plenty of combat. I'm hoping that presidential candidates like mine will make this a topic at the forefront of their campaigns; in the meantime, I urge you to send this link with a note to your senator and representative demanding immediate action on this issue if they expect your vote the next time around. That's what "Support the Troops" REALLY means!

Click here for the article in Newsweek.