Rep. Tom Feeney vote against veterans blamed on hitting wrong button

Feeney 'outraged' over Kosmas TV ad
BY JOHN McCARTHY • FLORIDA TODAY • September 12, 2008

A new TV ad attacks Rep. Tom Feeney for voting against increased health benefits for veterans.

Feeney, R-Oviedo, was one of only two House of Representative members last June to vote against the Department of Veterans Affairs budget bill for this year.

But he did so by accident, he said, when he pressed the wrong button used to electronically record roll call votes in the House. Within days of the June 15, 2007, vote, Feeney explained the mistake, and his explanation was recorded in the Congressional Record.

"I inadvertently voted 'no' on H.R. 2642, the appropriations bill for military construction and the Department of Veterans affairs," the Congressional Record reads. "I intended to vote 'yes.' This is an important piece of legislation."

The 30-second spot from Democrat Suzanne Kosmas, featuring two Iraq war veterans, makes no mention of the correction. "I fought for my country," says an unnamed Marine veteran. "And Tom Feeney turned his back on me," adds an Army veteran.
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