A bill that would provide job training for military veterans failed Wednesday thanks to a Republican filibuster.
Supporters of the plan, which President Obama has endorsed, are ripping the right, insisting they're playing politics to avoid giving Obama any sort of legislative victory before Election Day. The GOP's opposition to the bill comes not long after the last jobs report showed unemployment among vets at a whopping 11%.
Democrats wrote the bill with a large amount of bipartisan support. In fact, as MSNBC's Rachel Maddow noted, four Republican senators—John Boozman of Arkansas, Mike Johanns of Nebraska, Richard Burr of North Carolina, and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania— all wrote parts of the bill, then voted against it.
"They got what they wanted, then they voted no," said Maddow, adding that she'd hoped the senators would at least show a "minimum willingness to come together on the issue of veterans."
Former Patrick Murphy, a former Democratic congressman from Pennsylvania—the first Iraq War vet to serve in Congress—called the Republicans' obstruction a "disgrace."
"These men and women fight for us overseas," he said. "The last thing they need to do is come back home and fight to get jobs."
When contacted by MSNBC, several GOP staffers tried to squirm out on a technicality, arguing that their bosses hadn't voted against vets per se, but merely against a rule that would have needed to be waived for the Senate to vote on the entire bill.
Ridiculous, said Murphy.
"These guys are looking for excuse after excuse after excuse" to obstruct any progress "because there's an election six-and-a-half weeks away."
He continued: "It's blatant partisan politics. And this is why America hates the Senate and hates the Congress."
Leave a Comment:
Is it too much to hope that any of these four Legislative boobs is up for re-election this year. If so, you know what to do, constituents!!
Speaking of boobs, the GI bill covers college/trade education cost for all vets. Go to gibill.va.gov for details.
My, My, MY~~where is the world going!!!
To hell in a hand basket if you believe msnbc news. Vets already have college/trade educational expensives covered by the GI bill. No need for another training bill. See gibill.va.gov.
I attempt to be a happy blue dot in a very red town, county and state and its hard. In fact we just had a lovely new "support the troops" sign go up in our town square, since the old one was over 10 years old and looking tired. While we have all of the coordinated Pence/Mourdock/Romney signs popping up everywhere, I think that a well worded letter to the editor is in order just to make sure that everyone knows what the (R)s are up to. This is disgusting. The 47% was disgusting because it included the disabled war vets, and any enlisted member under the rank of E-4. Its time to start talking about that.
Apparently you are not aware of the GI bill. It covers college/trade educational expenses for all vets. Go to gibill.va.gov for more information. So another vet training program is not needed.
I think this is outerageous and disgraceful. These vets risk their lives for our country and then our country spits in their faces when they come home. My hubby served in desert storm and has ptsd as a result and can't find a job to save his life. He is in the beginning stages of applying for his social security disability benefits. I pray that romney won't become the next president cause he will never get it then. Especially with senators who won't pass a bill because president obama supports it. That's so wrong on any and all levels.
Sorry that your husband has PTSD but your husband can take advantage of the GI bill educational benefits. There is no need for another Vet job training program.
www.facebook.com/pages/Lying-Ryan/224314927694192
I will encourage all Pennsylvanians to work hard to insure that Pat Toomey is never re-elected to public office. He is a disgrace!
Apparently you have never served in the military because you aren't aware of the GI bill which provides college/trade educational benefits fot all vets. There is no need for another job training program for vets.
So handing billions (to contractors) wasn't an issue going to Afghanistan and Iraq, but spending money towards employment is a problem? Yet they're going to use our soldiers and sailors in uniform, smiling and posing with them, for publicity. Hopefully more veterans will start showing up in the Beltway taking THEIR jobs.
The country's living on past glories, insane amounts of money are being pumped into the Mad Men who are slinging mud in attack ads. If one of them took the money and started helping small businesses and people who want to start a franchise up, employment would increase drastically. New jobs would be created. But no, they "need" it to keep flinging mud back and forth. Let them eat the mudpies.
The future is bleak if we don't "clean House (and Senate)".
The future is bleak because of uninformed voters such as you. The GI bill provides college/trade educational benefits for all vets. No need for another jobs for vets.
Greedy Old Pigs!
The GOP is determined to obstruct anything the President thinks would be a good thing, This is just sad, plain and simple sad. You expect these kids to give their lives - the least they could do is something for them so they can be gainfully employed when they come home. But then again, they would fall into the 47% that the republicans can care less about.
MW
And that is the truth. They have been shooting him down the entire time he has been in office; so they could ask America "Are you better off". They are a bunch of evil-spirited people. If they had just let the President do his job the economy would be back on track now! Shame on you Republicans; Open your eyes! Better yet open your Bibles!
Guess you don't understand that our federal government is spending $1.5 trillion dollars of borrowed money every year and our federal debt is $16.5 trillion dollars and increasing. Also, it is apparent that you aren't aware of the GI bill that covers college/trade educational benefits for all vets.
The bogus excuse for killing the bill is ridiculous. The real reason they killed the bill is deplorable.
Deplorable is the uniformed electorate. The GI bill provides college/trade educational benefits to all vets. No need for another vet jobs bill. By the way, we have a federal debt in excess of $16 trillion dollars. We should be cutting federal spending not initiating new spending programs.
The GOP is a party that does not care about veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. The GOP is all about making sure that their campaign contributors get kickbacks from war. The GOP does not care about the soldier in the combat zone nor the veteran who comes home from war and needs a job in civilian life. We have spent $4 trillion long term on Iraq and Afghanistan, and suffered 5,000 killed and 50,000 wounded in these wars. We need to understand that these veterans have served more time in combat than their fathers or grandfathers. Many of these veterans have served three even four combat tours often one year long. Special Forces soldiers may have served as many as seven or eight shorter combat tours. Suicide rates, divorce rates, unemployment, and alcohol and drug problems are rampant. Much of this is probably not the fault of the veteran suffering from brain trauma.
Research is pointing out that damage done to the cerebral cortex of the brain that gets slapped inside the skull by concussion of a roadside bomb blasts. This internal damage to the reasoning part of the brain that controls inhibitions. Psychiatrists and brain experts believe that this explains for the suicidal tendencies of numerous combat veterans coming home. A returning veteran driving a car 80 MPH in a School Zone with children nearby is one example of this type of behavior. The veteran used to driving fast to avoid a roadside bomb in Baghdad will face a triggering event, like a strange box in a ditch that causes him to suddenly return to Iraq. This mental phenomenon is poorly understood but explains in part what happens to these veterans. The other is an adrenalin rush of combat service unmatched in civilian life virtually anywhere.
So it was fine for the GOP to vote to start the unnecessary war in Iraq that diverted our attention from getting Osama Bin laden at Tora Bora and later in Western Pakistan. It was also fine to give two tax cuts in 2001 and 2003 that cost at least $2 trillion that went disproportionately to the wealthy. Most of the $4 trillion long term for these wars and the $2 trillion for the Bush tax cuts have been borrowed from Asia. Its perfectly fine to borrow nearly all this huge sum of money for the wars and tax cuts doubling our national debt from 2001-2009 from five trillion dollars to over $11 trillion in fiscal 2010 along with a budget deficit of $1.3 trillion. Money was never an issue for Republicans when it came time to send those troops into combat or those tax cuts for the rich.
Now we can not afford a few billion dollars for our veterans returning home. It really rings hypocritical for the GOP to say "We support out troops" on a bumper stick when it costs them nothing. Now the GOP just turns its back on our returning veterans who need help with finding jobs and careers, civilian job training, college, and counseling and mental health services to deal with the long term challenges posed by brain trauma injuries, PTSD, and mental anxiety caused by service in a combat zone.
The GOP just turned its back on these veterans when they need the most help. This GOP Senate filibuster action today is not only cowardly of those GOP Senators but it shows the true cowardly and immoral actions of the GOP. As usual Democrats and President Obama will have to do the heavy lifting of picking the pieces from the mess created by selfish, immature, and unpatriotic GOP Senators. President Obama needs another four years because he and Michelle are the only people who care about our wounded warriors and other veterans who need help. President Obama and Michelle are the only adults in the room when it comes to taking care of our military families. Let's give President Obama a Democratic Senate and a Democratic House. Can you say "Speaker Pelosi?" I sure can. Keep up those donations to Democrats, blog, knock on doors, or help Democrats win the majorities needed so we can rebuild our country for our kids and our returning veterans and the military families of these long Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
Rex, you failed to mention the GI bill in your rant. If you had any military experience, you would know that the GI bill provides college/trade educational benefits to all vets. There is no need for another jobs bill for vets. Also, you didn't mention that our federal government is spending $1.5 trillion of borrowed money every year under President Obama. Between 2008 and 2010, Democrats had control of the federal government and increased spending exponentially. Obamacare will be the final staw on the taxpayers back.
You guys live in an alternative universe. 23 million people would not need job training if they had jobs. In 1954 the Internal Revenue Code was Revised. The Corporate Profits Tax Rate was reduced from 75% to 45%. In 1955 Business Decisions to Invest in Fixed Capital increased 60%. Has Obama ever considered how much the economy would have grown in 3 years if the Corporate Profits Tax was reduced to 0%. How can you logically vilify corporations, use tax policy and regulations to drive them out of business, and then lie that you did everything possible to grow the economy. And the only way those 23 million people who are unemployed, including veterans, were ever going to be employed was if the economy grew. Without the goods and services produced by those very Corporation you hate so much we would all be working in the rice paddies at a subsistence level of existence. The most obvious fact that you overlook is how much value those corporations provide for America. And more to the point, the only chance those 23 million people had of being employed was if the Corporations grew.
Another example of an Obama policy that prevented Economic Growth is his energy policy. In 1986 under Ronald Reagen I could buy a gallon of gasoline for $0.65 per gallon. Adjusted for inflation that is $1.37 per gallon. What the Obama Administration and the voters who support them are doing to hollow out America's Economy is the biggest threat to America's well being in my life time.
John you sure comment alot here......to bad none of your comments amount to a hill of beans. You need to learn something about international markets. oil and therefore gas is part of a global market. The price of gas is controlled by a world market. As much as big oil would like you to think it, America producing more oil will not lower the price of gas at the pump. As a matter of fact, if the cost of oil dropped, the oil producers would shut down the American production becauase it would not bring in large enough profits.
Your comment must be something out of spin city which sounds interesting to read at first glance then sinks into the depths of ignorance and avarice. The Great Depression of 2008 was created by corporate greed in the buying and selling of derivative stock, an artificial escalation of housing prices by greedy investors, the deregulation of the banking industry, to name a few actual facts. The deficit we presently have was created under the Bush Administration in the unpaid wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush tax cuts to the rich and the initial bail out initiated by the Bush administration when the bottom fell out of our economy.
The policies of The Obama Administration have insured a steady but sure job growth almost from the inception of the initial measures to stabilize job losses. If The Republicans in Congress were not hell bent on derailing Obama, the job growth would have been much greater. The Republican party is betraying the people who voted for them by working to deny jobs to the veterans who have laid their lives on the line for our nation.
The voter suppression by the Republican party, The continuing blocking of direly needed legislation to create a stronger infrastructure, to help our states keep teachers and firefighters on the job, to invest in research and technology to allow our businesses to be more competitive on a global stage, will only cause republican voters to see your charade and vote these obstructionists out of political office this fall.
Under Carter we had alternative day rationing and long gas lines and $1.50 per gallon gasoline prices. We all know that governments set market prices by using the forces of government to restrict the supply. When Reagan took over he eliminated the restrictions and the price fell to $0.65 per gallon. And $0.30 of that was State and Federal Tax. In Europe today the price of gasoline is $9.00 per gallon and most of that is taxes. In 1973 the price of a Barrel of Oil was $2.00. In a matter of days after Russia, America and OPEC agreed to restrict the supply of Oil, the world's Oil price jumped up to their target price of $11.00 per barrel. As a matter of Economic Logic, No Oil Company has an incentive to restrict output or raise prices because all they can accomplish is to loose market share and reduce profits. Therefore when you see the price of gasoline today at $3.88 per gallon you know that as a matter of Federal Government Public Policy they want the price to be at least $2.50 per gallon above the unrestricted price that the American Economy is capable of producing. Only willful ignorance could prevent someone from acknowledging the impact artificially high energy prices have on our standard of living, and the economic efficiency, productivity and growth necessary to employ everybody who wants to work including veterans.
The Keynesian Economic Solution for Unemployment is a temporary measured amount of Deficit Spending. Obama's Deficit Spending as a percentage of GDP is ten times higher than Kennedy's and over the entire length of his time in office. Apparently more Keynesian Aggregated Demand Management is not the solution for Growing the American Economy. According to the Constitution all Spending and Taxing legislation has to originate in the House of Representatives. The Continuing Resolutions did not even come close to the mix of Spending, Taxing, and Deficit reforms necessary for the Economic Growth to Employ all the people who wanted to work. Work is the sine qua non of how Capitalism rationally distributes purchasing power to households according to how much each contribute to the value of the economic output produced. That is why Congress passed the Employment Act of 1947. Therefore Obama had a Constitutional Duty to allow the House of Representatives to initiate the Legislation, to lead the Democrats in the Senate to pass the bills and then to sign them into Law and Faithfully Enforce Them. He could have also insisted on pro Economic Growth Public Policies with respect to Immigration, Energy, Environmental Regulation, and Financial Market Reform. Blaming Republicans for not passing Obama's America Jobs Act for 23 million people looking for work just makes him look like a sorry sad sack of an excuse for a President of the United States of America. In addition to the 23 million people not working, in four years Obama paid somebodies Six Trillion Dollars they did not deserve, diverted productive resources from valuable employment to worthless employment and left our children and grandchildren to pay with interest well over Six Trillion for which they will get nothing of value in return. The very definition of Economic Justice is having and doing one's own. In practice this means receiving money in value the equivalent of what you produce and paying money in value the full equivalent of what you buy. This moral principle of voluntary exchange of equivalent value is the only way a community of free men can cooperate. This Debt overhang is the major impediment to Growth because it corrupts the moral principle underlying the monetary incentives for work, the voluntary exchange of equivalent value and the inviolable ownership of private property. These just happen to be what makes capitalism work better than any other economic system and is also a textbook case of what Obama's Progressive Economic Policies can do to wreck the economy.
Tom Coburn on Morning Joe said the bill failed because there are already 6 programs that are job's program for vets. He also said that the program was to be temporary and there was no such thing as "temporary" in Washington. Is this true and if so what are the programs.
I have been doing some surfing to try and find the Programs that Tom Coburn talked about...Still can't find them...Anyone?
The GOP is going through their usual spin and denial after doing something despicable. Remember this is the same party that found plenty of money for the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2003 that have added well over $2 trillion to our national debt. We will spend long term on Iraq and Afghanistan $4 trillion. Now all of a sudden we can not afford a few billion dollars to help Iraq and Afghanistan veterans get jobs when they come home. The Army right now loses more soldiers to suicide than it does to enemy bombs or bullets. Veteran's unemployment is significantly higher than their civilian peers as much as 11%, although veteran unemployment is a little bit lower than it was a couple years ago, much more work needs to be done. Suicide has reached epidemic proportions in the military here are some articles about this topic:
http: //www.usatoday.com/news/military/story/2012-06-22/panetta-suicide-prevention-military/55766050/1
http: //www.herkimertelegram.com/news/x1298144110/-Broken-Heart-Manifesto-seeks-to-provide-veterans-with-answers
http: //thedailystar.com/opinion/x321547921/Veteran-suicides-cant-be-ignored
http: //anewscafe.com/2012/09/11/when-death-is-intentional-part-3-rates-skyrocket-among-u-s-soldiers-veteran-suicides-double-the-average/
Here are a couple of articles about veteran unemployment:
http: //iava.org/blog/alarming-trend-veteran-unemployment
http: //www.forbes.com/sites/paulrieckhoff/2012/06/22/solving-the-riddle-of-veteran-unemployment/
Senator Coburn talked about other programs within the Veteran's Administration that help veterans find jobs. I don't know off of the top of my head all of these programs because most of them are probably parts of other larger bills. What we need to focus on are the facts that the current generation of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are facing tough times. The programs of the Veteran's Administration are currently overwhelmed, underfunded, and in serious need of reform. The VA is dealing with the huge numbers of victims of PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. The reality is that disability claims of veterans often take up to a year to process. The VA is woefully understaffed and under-resourced. President Obama has increased the VA's budget but more has to be done. This is a problem that Congress has to deal with and right now as we saw yesterday Congress shamefully failed those Iraq and Afghanistan veterans.
http: //watchdog.org/56829/ia-veteranclaims/
http: //www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/08/29/veterans-waiting-even-longer-for-benefits-especially-in-big-cities.html
If I am correct, R and R plan to cut 24% across the Board from Vet's, To add to this, In WI. when Gov. Walker so-called balanced the budget, Money was taken from various fund's, When I looked up what fund's under Veteran's, It was a Dollar amount But no specific's as to actual amont. In talking to ROB ZERBAN He acknowledged that $$ was taken But could not say Exactly how much. How does any one say they support the the Men and Women that have served in the Armed Forces But when there Benefit's or Entitlements are CUT you don't hear on Damn PEEP out of there mouth? They deserve better, THEY have earned it.
John Holdren coauthored books with Paul Ehrlich in in the 1970's. In, "An Ecologists's Perspective on Nuclear Power," Federation of American Scientists Public Issue Report, May/June 1978, Paul Ehrlich wrote, "Giving society cheap abundant energy....would be the equivalent of giving an idiot child a machine gun." John Holdren is Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
I saw this last night on Rachael's show. These 4 need to be vilified into eternity. Vets should be treated much better, but my guess is that because these soldiers are comparatively small in number the teapublicans will just shove them off in a corner, through a few platitudes at them and forgetr they ever existed. New rules, only the children of our congressional members shall be soldiers in the future........my guess is we would be fighting fewer wars if it were the children of congress being sent off to die.
old HABITS are hard to break GOD see everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Perhaps the time has come to revisit this plan of action.
I only wish that I had the organizational skills to advance an action like this...
these crooks are just like snakes they shed there skin an try to attack you in another way
these GOP crooks weren't born they were hatch like chickens they all talk the same way so we know all this mess is going on is plan but they will get what coming to them patience is one of the best thing in life also
If the bill was killed by a "Senate rule" I would suggest the Senate adopt a new rule which requires sponsors or co-sponsors of a bill being required to vote for the bill!
the republicans have to go, all they want are lower taxes and to hell with programd that truly help people. The GOP is jealous that thir guy is not going to win they see it on the wall so they will do anything to stop constructive blls that help our vets,farms and seniors. Wake Up America get rid of the the republcans,tea party and the rest of the idiot conservative in D.C.
We need a Democratic House and a Democratic Senate along with reelecting President Obama. Veteran's programs will only get better. I hope all veterans start thinking this way. Iraq and Afghanistan veterans were urinated on yesterday by the GOP Senate filibuster. The American Jobs Act and the Small business tax credit bill would have created or saved three million jobs. The Farm bill will help keep farmers, ranchers, and agricultural dependent businesses in business. All these bills are stalled by the GOP. If you vote for the GOP you are helping commit economic suicide for our country. RomneyRyan will make the Bush tax cuts permanent while cutting $5 trillion over ten years from Medicare and domestic programs essential to run the country. Vote Obama/Biden 2012 and a straight Democratic ticket in November for your state and local elections.
THE INCONVENIENT TRUTH: Those
Senate republican obstructionists are at it again! The voted to obstruct
another record voted to ensure that American does not get employed! This time
it is our returning war veterans that are affected! The republicans do not care
as long as our American economy stays in the ditch they got us into four years
ago so they can blame the President!
Maybe all Americans including responsible republicans and independent
thinking Americans will vote to remove these bums! These shameless and
disgraceful non-patriot jerks need to be held accountable and voted out of Senate!
Grand Obstructionist Party (GOP)/ Greedy OLD Party (GOP) lacks morality and the decency to cover the "sixes" of the soldiers who have put their lives on the line for ALL Americans, even those who do not respect our democracy. The Republicans start the wars for financial gain and have no regard for Americans who make the ultimate sacrifice. The GOP is holding our country hostage with their 40 vote, minority filibusters and inconsistent with the definition of a democracy, the minority vote is the vote that runs our country. We have LOST our democracy to the greedy Republicans. The minority vote should not be the ruling vote under a democracy. What we have is an oligarchy (rule by the rich few) and we need to vote the GOP out of all offices in order to regain our democracy!!
Thank you Rachel for bringing this to our attention! Where is mainstream media in all of this? Oh, I forgot that mainstream media is owned by the Republicans!