By now, political geeks of all persuasions are familiar with the little spat that occurred last night during the health care debate, in which Senator Tom Coburn of OK appeared to be invoking the wrath of the almighty to strike down a fellow senator and prevent the cloture vote from moving forward.
But what you might not know is that Coburn is not new to this kind of bombastic politics. Recently, he cast himself in the role of hero in a little play entitled "Coburn Takes on The UN" -- at the expense of veterans' health care.
In early November, veterans groups started getting nervous that an anonymous hold placed on the Veterans’ Caregiver and Omnibus Health Benefits Act of 2009 would prevent the bill's passage this session. The Marine Corps Times identified the anonymous hold out senator as Tom Coburn, first term senator from Oklahoma.
Why place a hold on a bill that would benefit thousands of disabled veterans with serious medical conditions? Sources speculated at the time that it may have been an attempt to "divert money from unspent economic and job stimulus programs to cover costs of new benefits for veterans and their families." Arguably a decent goal, although in practice consideration of such an amendment would result in too much delay.
If we are to believe Coburn's press statements, however, his concerns went far beyond a desire to move some unspent stimulus dollars into the Veterans Affairs budget. No, Tom Coburn was involved in a struggle that spanned the globe: the sinister co-option of American veterans health care funds to pad the budget of the United Nations.
What? You didn't know the UN was stealing money from disabled American veterans? Possibly, that is because Senator Coburn decided that money budgeted for the UN belonged to disabled veterans, and then decided to prevent the senate from allowing this theft, by placing a hold on key veterans legislation. Does your head hurt yet? Let's let (Doctor) Senator Coburn explain the depth of this terrible conspiracy, and his effort to stop it:
Today, the Senate made a poor choice. We voted to send billions of taxpayer dollars to a corrupt organization that provides an international platform for rogue dictators rather than sending those funds to our wounded veterans. Congress should be sacrificing for our veterans and the next generation rather than defending an ineffective and corrupt organization.
Why would congress do such an evil, anti-American thing? Could it be that after Coburn's initial amendment to redirect military construction funds to veterans care didn't pass, he proposed an amendment stripping money from the UN budget in order to salvage a few good sound bites from the experience? Let us not indulge in such idle speculation, when American lives are at stake.
(The veterans bill did eventually pass. Although it did enable the sending of billions of taxpayer dollars to a corrupt organization that provides an international platform for rogue dictators, Senator Coburn voted for it anyway.)
Senate Votes to Fund UN Over Disabled Veterans