This afternoon, the Republican Study Conference raised Points of Order against sections in the Military Quality of Life Appropriations bill, in effect stripping from the bill funding vital to our troops.
I'm sure most of the MSM will miss this, and I'm not sure how many folks will actually care. But some soldier serving in South Korea, or a Marine at Camp Pendleton, or a Navy Seal in Qatar, will definitely notice it.
The same week Shrub signed into law a $200 million tax cut for the CEO of Exxon, the most conservative Republicans in the House, the Republican Study Conference, led by the condescending Mike Pence of Indiana and that repugnant Phil Gramm wannabe Jeb Hensarling, moved to strip out essential funding for our troops in the Military Quality of Life appropriations bill.
Just two night before, the Republicans had rammed through a budget that was $824 million short of what even the Shrub said we needed for military construction, veterans, and healthcare programs.
But they weren't done yet.
Typically, the MilQua bill (funding military housing and construction, defense health programs, along with veterans' benefits) is sacrosanct, along with the Defense Appropriations bill.
It's funding for our troops and their families.
We're in a time of war.
No one is sacrificing more for this Administration's mistakes.
But below is just a taste of what Pence and Hensarling were doing on the House floor this afternoon. These boys love them some tax cuts - even if our military and our troops have to foot the bill. More than a handful of their fellow Republicans on the Armed Services and the Appropriations Committees (such as Jim Walsh and Jerry Lewis) don't support this ideology of balancing tax cuts on the back of our troops and their families.
It's splitting the R ranks to where Majority Leader Boehner has to head to the floor to calm down the restlessness in the ranks.
$379 million in Army Construction cut.
$26 million for the Marines cut.
$50 million for Air Force Construction/Predator facilites funding cut.
$54 million for Special Operations facilities in Qatar cut (let's ease up on al-Qaeda)
Add it all up (there's more) and this will amount to over a half a billion blow to our troops.
Jim Walsh, Republican of New York, said it best:
"Does he not understand that we are at war?" asked House Military Quality of Life Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman James Walsh, R-N.Y. "Does he not understand we have people in harm's way across the entire southern tier of Asia?"
I'm sure a few Kossacks might wonder whether this is just all pork. But even the Administration and the Pentagon have asserted that much of this funding is vital, even in a tight budget year.
Even more ironic? Many of these RSC Republicans loudly denouncing spending on essential government services and programs as wasteful still try to manuever quietly to get little pork projects for their own district. They loudly denounce in public, to rally their base, what they quietly practice in private when the cameras and reporters aren't around.
But the larger point is this: Rs can always find money for tax cuts - they have cut social domestic programs to the bone since 2001. The Rs ask nothing of those with plenty - and ever more from those who sacrifice and struggle to get by with just enough.
And they won't stop and they won't quit.
Now, they want to go after the troops. Today, they can't seem to find the money to give those soldiers living in South Korea, or Marines stationed in Camp Pendleton some decent living and training facilities.
What's next?
These cuts will hit military facilties such as Ft. Stewart in Georgia, Ft. Drum in New York, Ft. Campbell in Kentucky, Indian Springs AF Predator facilities in Nevada, Yongpyang Army Base in South Korea, Camp Hansen in Japan, Ft. Lewis in Washington, and Camp Roberts in California. It will hit the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, Army Nat'l Guard, Army Reserve, and Special Operations Command.
So, whatever happened to supporting our troops?
The proof's in the pudding: http://clerk.house.gov/...
BTW, the Rs will always bend over backwards to find a way to protect tax cuts from Budget Points of Order.
But when it comes to funding for our military and the troops, it's just like the soldiers and Marines they voted to send to Iraq without adequate body armor and HUMVEEs.
They're on their own.
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1:38 P.M. - Mr. Hensarling raised a point of order against the content of the measure. The proviso beginning on page 60, line 15 and ending on page 60, line 20 violates the Budget Act. Subsequently, Mr. Walsh insisted that the point of order lie against the entire paragraph which provides additional funds for Military Construction, Army Reserve. The Chair sustained the point of order.
1:37 P.M. - Mr. Hensarling raised a point of order against the content of the measure. The proviso beginning on page 60, line 6 and ending on page 60, line 11 violates the Budget Act. Subsequently, Mr. Walsh insisted that the point of order lie against the entire paragraph which provides additional funding for Military Construction, National Guard. The Chair sustained the point of order.
1:26 P.M. - Mr. Hensarling raised a point of order against the content of the measure. The proviso beginning on page 59, line 22 and ending on page 60, line 2, violates the Budget Act. Subsequently, Mr. Walsh insisted that the point of order lie against the entire paragraph which provides additional funds for Military Construction, Defense-Wide. The Chair sustained the point of order.
1:25 P.M. - Mr. Hensarling raised a point of order against the content of the measure. The proviso beginning on page 59, line 13, and ending on page 59, line 18 violates the Budget Act. Subsequently, Mr. Walsh insisted that the point of order lie against the entire paragraph which provides additional funds for Military Construction, Air Force. The Chair sustained the point of order.
1:23 P.M. - Mr. Hensarling raised a point of order against the content of the measure. The proviso beginning on page 59, line 4 and ending on page 59, line 9 violates the Budget Act. Subsequently, Mr. Walsh insisted that the point of order lie against the entire paragraph which provides additional funds for Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps. The Chair sustained the point of order.
12:33 P.M. - Mr. Hensarling raised a point of order against the content of the measure. The proviso beginning on page 58, line 20, and ending on page 58 line 25 violates the Budget Act. Subsequently, Mr. Walsh insisted that the point of order lie against the entire paragraph which provides additional funds for Military Construction, Army. The Chair sustained the point of order.