Veterans Remember Damage Congress Already Did

Veterans Remember Damage Congress Already Did
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
October 6, 2013

Florida Republicans in Congress are in trouble. Why? Because we're the number three state with the most veterans and veterans don't like it when someone messes with the country they risked their lives for.

Sure they are just like everyone else with their own political views but no matter what party they vote for, they always think the person they vote for will do right by the whole country. After all, these men and women didn't risk their lives for a state. They risked them for the whole country. They also pay attention.

For Democrats to win a House majority, 17 seats would need to switch to their party's favor. Results show that would be within reach, as Republican incumbents are behind in 17 of the districts analyzed: CA-31, CO-06, FL-02, FL-10, FL-13, IA-03, IA-04, IL-13, KY-06, MI-01, MI-07, MI-11, NY-19, OH-14, PA-07, PA-08, WI-07.

In four districts, the incumbent Republican fell behind after respondents were told their representative supported the government shutdown: CA-10, NY-11, NY-23, VA-02.

They hear something like "we need to make cuts" and remember how much was already cut because these yahoos couldn't figure out how to pass a budget last year. They were not happy then and they are not happy now.

The Washington Post:

The 2013 sequester includes: $42.7 billion in defense cuts (a 7.9 percent cut).

$28.7 billion in domestic discretionary cuts (a 5.3 percent cut).

$9.9 billion in Medicare cuts (a 2 percent cut).

$4 billion in other mandatory cuts (a 5.8 percent cut to nondefense programs, and a 7.8 percent cut to mandatory defense programs).

That makes for a total of $85.4 billion in cuts. Note: numbers here updated to latest CBO figures; thanks to Center for Budget and Policy Priorities for noting the difference from initial OMB numbers.

More will be cut in 2014 and later; from 2014 to 2021, the sequester will cut $87 to $92 billion from the discretionary budget every year, and $109 billion total.

They remember. Looks like no one else in the congress wants to remember what they already put the country through because instead of just doing the right thing now, they fail to take a stand for what is right for the whole country.

As for letting the Tea Party folks dictate anything, veterans also remember how they wanted to cut the VA that takes care of disabled veterans and Medicare seniors not getting disability but are veterans all the same.

They remember when Army Times reported this

Tea party favorite Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., has unveiled a plan for cutting $400 billion in federal spending that includes freezing Veterans Affairs Department health care spending and cutting veterans' disability benefits.

They also remember this

VA Care End Eyed for 1.3 Million Vets

Budget Panel Eyes End to VA Care for 1.3 Million Vets

The House Budget Committee, chaired by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), has told a veterans' group it is studying a plan to save $6 billion annually in VA health care costs by cancelling enrollment of any veteran who doesn't have a service-related medical condition and is not poor.

Committee Republicans, searching for ways to curb federal deficits and rein in galloping VA costs, are targeting 1.3 million veterans who claim priority group 7 or 8 status and have access to VA care.

Priority group 8 veterans have no service-connected disabilities and annual incomes, or net worth, that exceed VA means-test thresholds and VA "geographic income" thresholds, which are set by family size.

This is the budget that the House voted on to pass and the Senate said "hell no" to. It is stunts like this brought to you by the Tea Party Folks that pushed to have these yahoos elected. How did they expect anything to get done in the government if they were out to prove the government didn't work?