Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
USA Today
May 16, 2008
Pg. 19
Plain Talk
By Al Neuharth, USA Today Founder
Saturday is Armed Forces Day, observed every May since 1950. It's a good time to ask who really appreciates and supports our troops.
A new "21st Century G.I. Bill of Rights" to help finance college education for military veterans is pending in the U.S. Senate. Leading proponents and opponents:
*The bill was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va. It has 58 co-sponsors, including 11 Republicans and two Independents.
*It is opposed by the Bush administration and by Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
This week, McCain introduced a politically tricky amendment to an unrelated bill that would have dramatically reduced benefits offered in the new G.I. Bill. The Senate on Wednesday voted 55-42 to kill McCain's mischief.
The Webb bill cost is an estimated $52 billion over the next 10 years. McCain's proposal is estimated at $34 billion over the same period. To put the dollars in perspective, the war without end in Iraq, which McCain strongly supports, already has cost us $526 billion since it began five years ago.
Under the first G.I. Bill in 1944, more than 7.8 million of us World War II vets went to college. The new Webb bill would guarantee a full scholarship to any public in-state university to vets who have served three years.
"Support our troops" has been the mostly lip-service slogan of President Bush and his crowd ever since they made the mistake of invading Iraq. Our new policy should be: Support our troops by bringing them home from Iraq, sooner rather than later. Then thank them properly when they complete their service with a paid-for college education.
The Senate should support the new G.I. Bill so strongly that it can override any bumbling Bush veto.
May 16, 2008
Pg. 19
Plain Talk
By Al Neuharth, USA Today Founder
Saturday is Armed Forces Day, observed every May since 1950. It's a good time to ask who really appreciates and supports our troops.
A new "21st Century G.I. Bill of Rights" to help finance college education for military veterans is pending in the U.S. Senate. Leading proponents and opponents:
*The bill was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va. It has 58 co-sponsors, including 11 Republicans and two Independents.
*It is opposed by the Bush administration and by Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
This week, McCain introduced a politically tricky amendment to an unrelated bill that would have dramatically reduced benefits offered in the new G.I. Bill. The Senate on Wednesday voted 55-42 to kill McCain's mischief.
The Webb bill cost is an estimated $52 billion over the next 10 years. McCain's proposal is estimated at $34 billion over the same period. To put the dollars in perspective, the war without end in Iraq, which McCain strongly supports, already has cost us $526 billion since it began five years ago.
Under the first G.I. Bill in 1944, more than 7.8 million of us World War II vets went to college. The new Webb bill would guarantee a full scholarship to any public in-state university to vets who have served three years.
"Support our troops" has been the mostly lip-service slogan of President Bush and his crowd ever since they made the mistake of invading Iraq. Our new policy should be: Support our troops by bringing them home from Iraq, sooner rather than later. Then thank them properly when they complete their service with a paid-for college education.
The Senate should support the new G.I. Bill so strongly that it can override any bumbling Bush veto.