Senate Republicans Block Veterans Jobs Bill
On Wednesday, Senate Republicans blocked a bill to provide jobs and job training for veterans. ( Senate rules required 60 votes to move the bill forward. It fell 2 votes short. All the Democrats voted yes, but most of the Republicans voted no)
In his post Senate Republicans Shaft the Vets, Robert L. Borosage (President, Institute for America’s Future) states:
“ The young men and women who serve in our military return from fighting in the longest wars in American history to the worst jobs market in generations. They suffer higher unemployment rates than the general population: over one in ten is officially counted as unemployed -- and that does not include those who have stopped looking for work or are forced to work part-time.”
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America founder and CEO Paul Rieckhoff argues that election politics should never stand in the way of creating job opportunities for our nation’s veterans. The blockage of the Veterans Jobs Corps Act should outrage all Americans.
Robert Bowen’s op-ed Senate Republicans Kill Veterans Jobs Bill Despite Their Rhetoric (published on Examiner.com) conveys:
“The stated Republican argument for kicking the men and women who risked their lives for our country was that the bill “was not paid for.” The real reason is that Republicans do not want to put veterans or anyone else to back to work because it might give President Obama a win. So veterans suffer for the sake of Republican politics. Senate Republican Leader McConnell said defeating Obama is their number one priority.”
“Republicans all wear American flag lapel pins. In every speech, they say things like “Support our troops. …. But when it came down to actually doing something for veterans, Republicans said “HELL NO.” This is disgusting, disgraceful, and downright immoral.”
“The argument that the $1 billion dollar price tag was not paid for frankly stinks. Veterans risked their lives for this nation. Thousands lost their lives. Tens of thousands came home missing limbs, eyes, and their hearing. Hundreds of thousands suffer from PST or other battle-related disorders. They left their families, missed the birth of their children, funerals of family members, school recitals, graduations and other things to defend our freedom.”
“Yet Republicans say they are not worth $1 billion dollars to help them find a job? We spent $3 trillion on the Iraq war. Most of that money went to giant defense contractors and no-bid contracts to Republicans supporters. Seriously, we can’t add one more billion to help the Veterans? Look at the money we waste paying for this Congress, financing its constant vacations.”
"President Obama says repeatedly that the men and women who fight for this country should not come home only to fight for a job. Unemployment is much higher for veterans than the population as a whole. Thousands of veterans are homeless because a “not-so-grateful” nation can not provide them with a job."
"Where was Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan’s leadership on this bill? Why did neither say a word about it? Why did they not encourage their fellow Republicans to put country ahead of party? Veterans should take note of their non-support!”
