It is very obvious that our Defense Budget needs to be cut. I think everyone on this website can agree with that. So, when we see those words, progressives and liberals and Democrats and everyone on the left tend to celebrate before they undertstand what those words actually mean.
First cuts to the Defense Budget will most likely come from service members and their families. Leon Panetta will make sure of it:
In what he described as the most sensitive of the potential cuts facing an all-volunteer force, Mr. Panetta said the Pentagon was considering raising fees for the military’s health insurance program, Tricare.
(snip)
Mr. Panetta provided no details of potential reductions in military retirement pay for those who enlist in the future, but said he would consider supporting the creation of a binding commission to review such pay.
And, in case you think that Mr. Panetta doesn't have the backing in Congress, here is what John McCain had to say:
McCain also urged the so-called supercommittee to consider restricting working-age military retirees and their dependents from enrolling in TRICARE Prime, which has the lowest out-of-pocket expenses. The retirees could still enroll in other TRICARE programs. McCain pointed out that the Congressional Budget Office has estimated that such a move would save $111 billion over 10 years.
He doesn't just support raising costs, he supports denying retirees access to the most affordable insurance plan currently available.
The last time this kind of news hit military circles, the Pentagon was inundated with phone calls. But, the truth of the matter is, it didn't matter. The Pentagon isn't accountable to the troops nor to other everyday citizens. Only the top of the food chain is accountable to us... truthfully, at the end of the day, only one person can protect veterans from these cuts and that would be President Obama. He has the power of the veto and can threaten to veto any legislation that includes cuts to veterans and families.
But will he?
President Obama is being told that unless we cuts benefits, the mission of today's military cannot be met. That means we might actually have to change our mission. The President seems unwilling to consider this path. Though troop drawbacks in both Iraq and Afghanistan will help, they aren't enough.
President Obama is being told that increases in costs to retirees are negligible - after all, retirees pay much less for their health insurance than other civilian retirement plans. You know that tired argument because we're hearing it all over place - corporations don't provide this anymore so why should our government? President Clinton already took away this free benefit in 1995 - yep, military retirees blame a Democrat for that one. So if we raise fees even more in 2011, who will take the blame? Another Democrat. Make all the arguments you like that Democrats care more about veterans and their families, but no matter how true they are, it will come back to this issue again and again and again.
Just check out the titles of the articles on a google search for John McCain cuts military benefits; three of the first five mention Obama in the title:
John McCain Agrees with Obama on Cutting Retired Military Benefits
McCain Joins Obama's Call for Military Benefit Cuts
John McCain Agrees with Obama on Cutting Retired Military Benefits
Let's face it, if the costs per retiree are so damn small, why can't the government afford to cover them? Why should retirees have to use their own hard-earned pensions to pay for their own hard-earned health care?
Because Congress can't budget, that is why.
One of the reasons this little issue is so frustrating is that it really isn't about military retiree medical care... or, it shouldn't be. This is a about our entire health care system in the United States and the inability of Congress to find real solutions. Costs for taking care of retirees are going up for the military not because we have more retirees needing care but because the costs of care are sky-rocketing. We see this not only with military health insurance, but also with Medicare and Medicaid.
Let's make fixing the health care system a National Security issue. Obviously, in the minds of many politicians, it already is. They are making choices between caring for military retirees or purchasing the latest weapons system and the weapons systems are winning.
We can save money in the Defense Budget by providing a health care system that cares for all Americans; this would bring overall costs down for everyone, including the military. It's not that complicated.