In an editorial this morning, the New York Times chides President Bush for his resistance to the GI Bill, which he has pledged to veto: Having saddled the military with a botched, unwinnable war, having squandered soldiers' lives and failed them in so many ways, the commander in chief now resists giving the troops a chance at better futures out of uniform. [...] So lavish with other people's sacrifices, so reckless in pouring the national treasure into the sandy pit of Iraq, Mr. Bush remains as cheap as ever when it comes to helping people at home.
You would think that the man who allegedly tears up when meeting with the families of fallen soldiers would be doing everything in his power to use the power of his bully pulpit to ease the way for those who return after their tours of duty have been completed. The proposed GI Bill, f'rinstance, would be a good way to demonstrate this country's commitment to something more than slapping magnetic ribbons on the back of our SUVs. Hey, if we can continue to subsidize oil companies as they make record profits, you'd think we'd be able to throw some money at a decent and fair GI Bill...right??
The problem here is that we love our troops...and yetwe're apparently OK with the idea of allowing The Decider © to do it on the cheap. Yeah, it's also a whole lot cheaper when they come home in boxes, isn't it? No rehabilitiation, no therapy, no mental health care...just a military funeral, and you're done with it.
Well, you might think that Our Glorious and Benevolent Leader © would be making sure that we take care of our men and women in uniform...and you'd be horribly mistaken. How can a long-term investment in the men and women who sacrifice so much to serve be anything BUT a good thing (Even 75 Senators agree on this point)? While the Chickenhawk children of wealth an privilege fight the war against terrorism from the comfort of their frat houses, the children of the middle and lower classes are doing the fighting, the dying, and the serving as targets for roadside bombs. Yet The Worst President EVER © and Bush Lite © both insist on nickel-and-diming those who serve while untold BILLIONS continue to be flushed down the rathole that is the Iraq war.
At the same time it is strongly opposing a slight increase in pay for the troops, the Bush administration is asking for hundreds of billions more for war. To put it in all in context, the White House wants $165 billion to continue fighting the Iraq and Afghanistan wars this year, but refuses to spend 0.2 percent of that amount ($324 million) to provide the troops a slight pay raise.
OH...and here's a memo to White House Press Secretary Dana Perino: it wouldn't hurt if it weren't true....
