America's Veterans
AMERICA'S VETERANS -- (House of Representatives - February 09, 2005)
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I want to first of all thank the gentleman and the ranking member, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) for holding this special order.
Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the gentleman a question. I know I will get an opportunity to speak. But I was reading an article concerning the Under Secretary of Defense David Chu, and he said that the organizations that the gentleman was pointing to, the VA organizations, have been too successful in lobbying Congress and that we are taking money that should go to the military for weapons and we are giving it to the veterans.
Can the gentleman expound on that for me?
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. If the gentleman would yield further, let me just read the statement. ``Aggressive lobbying by veterans groups that brought about medical care for retired military health brings about this great drain on fighting wars, Chu said in the article. He described it as painful to move moneys for new weapons programs to accounts that fund TRICARE.''
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. If the gentleman would yield further, my question to the gentleman is I agree that we have a budget, and you determine something about the people of a country how you use that budget.
It is clear to me that this President, President Bush, his priority is for the people that funded his campaign. It is not a matter of whether we should fund weapons or supplies that our troops need or whether we should take care of the veterans who have taken care of us for so many years and who need us in their twilight. It is these tax cuts that this administration wants to make permanent. That is the problem. It is a matter of priorities.
I mentioned earlier today that Valentine's Day is coming up. Everybody wants to show you some love. If you love me, you are going to send me flowers or spend some money on me, you are going to take me out to dinner. But it is clear that the Bush administration does not love these veterans. In other words, they talk a great talk, but they do not walk the walk or they do not roll the roll. If you look at their budget, the budget priorities are to their rich friends that funded their campaign coffers, and not to the veterans that need them.
I come from a district where the veterans are not the richest in the country. In fact, one-third of the homeless people are veterans that have fallen through the safety net. They are not getting the health care they need or the mental health counseling or the job opportunities. It is a failure. The richest country in the world, and we are trying to put the burdens of the war on the veterans. Help me, somebody.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. If the gentleman will yield further, I am reminded of the words of the first President of the United States, George Washington, whose words are worth repeating at this time. ``The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportioned as to how they perceive the veterans of earlier wars are treated and appreciated by their country.''
Now, I think that is very profound. In other words, how we treat our veterans today will determine whether our young people will enlist and commit themselves to go to war to fight for our great country. Profound, does the gentleman not think?
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. If the gentleman will yield further, for the last 4 years, every year we have had to go through this dance, and predominantly the Democrats have had to fight to increase these budgets. But this year, I guess after the election and after the President and his party have flim-flammed the American people, the gloves are off. They do not care.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, the sad thing is that the gentleman is talking about the people's House; and the people's House, under this administration, more so than even when the Republicans took over, but under this administration has been run like a dictatorship. It is very, very sad, and I am glad that the gentleman from Ohio pointed out what it is that veterans can do. I know the organizations are talking to their members because they are talking to me. But they need to contact their Member of Congress and let them know, as Senator and former Governor Chiles used to say, ``This dog won't hunt.''
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I think this is bigger than CHRIS SMITH in that it is the House of Representatives that we can change in 2 years; we can change the direction of this country. And it goes back to elections, I have to say it. I mean, what happens in an election controls everything we do, from the time you are born to the time you die and everything in-between.
This veterans budget, I have to say if it had been Senator Kerry, we never would have received a budget like this, or if it had been any of the Democratic candidates and, really, if it had been any of the other Republican candidates. This administration is totally insensitive to the needs of the veterans and the people. They talk a great talk, but they do not walk the walk. They only care about the 1 percent of the people that contribute to their campaign, and if you are not writing checks to the Republican campaign, then just forget it.
But the veterans can turn this around. I know that they can mobilize. I know what they can do; I have seen it happen in Florida. Once before they cut major health care assistance in Florida, and the veterans and organizations and groups got together. They called their Congress people and, let me tell my colleague, not only did they put the money back; they do not even know how it got out. So I know they can do it.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, it is a contract. It is a contract. When those young men and women in their prime go and fight for us and serve for us, we owe them. They should not be fighting for the guarantee that we promised them, basic health care, and yet, these copayments and these fees, they cannot afford it. They live on a fixed income.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. But, sir, if the gentleman will yield, how many have been wounded? How many have been disabled? They are going to come back, and then they are not in the military system, they are in the VA system. How will the VA system handle them when they are proposing to cut out thousands of nurses?
Now, I know the gentleman has the same problem that I have when they come to us about how long they have to wait in order to get assistance, and we have to intervene. For basic assistance, they are put on a waiting list, and they wait for weeks and months. Yet we are going to have all of these veterans, thousands coming back.
The gentleman mentioned the number that have been killed, but what about those who have been wounded, coming into a system that we are cutting to the bone. It is a failure. There is a Constitution and there is a separation of power. We have a duty as Members of the Congress, of the people's House, to deal with this budget.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I just want to thank the gentleman again for having this special order tonight and pointing out what the veterans can do to turn this around.
We in this House cannot do it. We can point it out. We can have town hall meetings in the districts. We will do that. We can talk to the groups and organizations. But I do know that the veterans have the power to influence this body and the other body and the White House. If nothing else, they can put a circle around that White House and let them know that Humpty Dumpty must fall.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I would say that if we did a poll, one of those CNN polls or one of those polls that we do every day, and ask, Do you want the 1 percent tax cut done away with to completely fund the veterans program, I bet we would get 75 or 80 percent saying, Let us fund the veteran program. Without a doubt, the American people want to pay their debt, and we owe these veterans.
It is not welfare. It is paying for people that have stood up for you in their prime, and now they need us. And what are we doing? We are giving tax breaks to people that contribute to our campaign. And that really bothers me because when you talk to the veterans, you know that they are vulnerable, they are sick, and they need the assistance.
Many of the people that you pass right here in D.C. on the street, homeless, are veterans that the system has failed. One-third of the homeless people are veterans.
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Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. In conclusion, our work is cut out for us. We know what we have to do to educate the American people, to turn this horrible proposal for these veterans around.
I think one of the scriptures that I particularly like is, To whom God has given much, much is expected.
God has been good to America. It is important that America is good to the people that have stood up for us throughout the years.
This budget is unacceptable. I remember talking once to the veterans groups and I said, this administration, the Bush administration, talks a great talk, but they do not walk the walk. And this was the Paralyzed Veterans and they said, They do not roll the roll either. And that is truth.
But the key is, we together, Democrats and Republicans, and particularly the veterans' organizations can turn this around. We really need a dedicated source of funding. We should not have to deal with this every single year.
Mr. Speaker, the following is an article entitled ``Veterans Angered By Official's Comments.''
[From the Tribune-Herald, Feb. 7, 2005]
Veterans Angered by Official's Comments
(By Richard L. Smith)
Let me see if I have this straight. We need to squeeze just a little more sacrifice out of our military veterans. Is that it?
That seems to be the implicit message of David Chu. He is an economist who spent the better part of the past quarter-century as a federal bureaucrat. He now directs the Pentagon human resource shop as under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness. Chu managed to outrage some veterans with his comments in a Jan. 25, 2005, interview with the Wall Street Journal.
If you believe Chu, money going for military retirement and veterans benefits would be better spent on weapons. He called the amounts of money expended on veterans ``hurtful'' to the national defense in the Journal article.
I sent a list of questions I had about Chu's remarks by e-mail to the Pentagon. I was told my questions could not be answered by my deadline. So I extended my deadline. I am still waiting to hear from the Defense Department.
Aggressive lobbying by veterans groups that brought about medical care for retired military helped bring about this great drain on fighting wars, Chu said in the article. He described it as ``painful'' to move money for new weapons programs to accounts that fund Tricare, the managed health care system for military personnel and retired service members over the age of 65. And, of course, the Pentagon official said proposals to reduce the reservist retirement age from 60 to 55 would also not be a good idea.
Chu's remarks did not go over well with everyone, if you can imagine that.
Bob Clements, a retired Air Force brigadier general from Carmichael, Calif., said he has a large e-mail network made up of hundreds of veterans. Clements sent out a message recently in which, in his words, he ``decided to cut loose'' on Chu. The retired fighter pilot and medic pointed out in an e-mail missive he launched that Chu knew that military retirees had until recently been slow to band together to protect their benefits. He urged veterans to continue to stand up and fight for their rights. Clements said he also has been around the block enough to know that such a high-level official ``is not spouting off'' on his own.
``I don't see how these remarks could be made by a subordinate without the secretary of defense's and the president's approval,'' Clements told me during a phone interview.
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, said he believes Chu was running an idea up the flagpole to see whether it gets saluted or picked off. Edwards prefers the latter.
``I hope that Secretary Chu doesn't reflect the administration's position,'' Edwards told me by phone from Washington. ``But if he does, that trial balloon should be shot down by howitzers.''
Edwards, who represented the Army's massive Fort Hood base until Texas Republicans redrew congressional districts in 2003, went to the House floor after the Journal article hit the streets and denounced Chu's remarks.
``The fact is that we are spending too little, not too much on our veterans and military retirees,'' the congressman told colleagues. ``The truth is that last year's budget for veterans health care did not even keep up with inflation. So, in effect, we had a real cut in veterans health care spending during a time of war. What happened to the principle of shared sacrifice during a time of war?''
Edwards said Chu's remarks were a slap in the face for veterans.
``I find Secretary Chu's statement to be offensive and outrageous,'' Edwards told me. ``It's offensive to every serviceman and woman who has ever put on the uniform and has been willing to risk their life for their country.''
Veterans organizations were also quick to condemn the statement made by Chu. A statement by the American Legion said that the government's care for its veterans was part of a moral contract that should not be broken. The Military Officers Association of America, which the Journal article called the main force behind retiree benefits, labeled Chu's assertions as ``baloney.''
If Chu is the Bush administration's canary in the coal mine of public opinion, then perhaps we are getting a glimpse of where veterans benefits are headed. Take retirement pay for example. Chu said in the article that the 19-year-old enlistee doesn't care about annuities. Young GI Joe or Jane would rather have the cash to buy a ``pickup truck,'' the Defense Department official told the Journal.
Edwards calls such a contention insulting to the young men and women who risk their lives to serve. Benefits, he said, are part of what helps the military attract and keep the high-caliber service members in its employ.
Of course, these benefits come from all of the taxpayers out there and not just veterans. But there does seem to be a high level of public support for those who are fighting our wars. Do you think those with ribbons magnets on their cars will begrudge health care to those troops who return home? It would seem hard to imagine. Why, some people probably wouldn't mind throwing in a pickup truck in as part of the package.
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