Will Sen. Tom Coburn single-handedly block a suicide prevention program for veterans?

Hunter

Daily Kos Staff

Monday December 15, 2014 · 12:24 PM PST

2014/12/15 · 12:24

no image description available — I'd say he was the biggest jerk in Washington, but the competition is so steep

Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) holds up a copy of the U.S. Constitution during the Senate nomination hearing of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito on Capitol Hill in Washington January 11, 2006. Roman Catholics would be the majority on the U.S. Supreme Court f

I'd say he was the biggest jerk in Washington, but the competition is so steep

Oklahoma Republican Sen. Tom Coburn continues to single-handedly block the Clay Hunt SAV Act, otherwise known as the Suicide Prevention for America’s Veterans Act. His reason: it will cost $22 million, and that's $22 million he doesn't want to spend.

It's a bipartisan and very popular bill, and $22 million is, sadly, not a great deal of money when considered against the nearly $3 trillion-cost of the wars those veterans fought. There's been a push over the weekend to convince Coburn to get the hell out of the way.

“This is why people hate Washington. Senator Coburn is the only person stopping this bill from becoming law,” said IAVA CEO and Founder Paul Rieckhoff. “If Senator Coburn blocks the Clay Hunt SAV Act, an enduring part of his legacy will be killing an overwhelmingly supported bipartisan suicide prevention bill for our veterans. That has real implications. If it takes 90 days to revisit this issue in the next Congress, the statistics tell us that 1,980 additional veterans will die by suicide. Senator Coburn needs to think carefully about that number in addition to his concerns about the minimal financial costs of this bill.”

Also by way of comparison, note that the United States paid over $80 million to two psychologists to assist in designing the American torture program. But a fifth of that for the vets, now that's where Tom Coburn draws the line.

You have to wonder where these people's minds are.

Will Sen. Tom Coburn single-handedly block a suicide prevention program for veterans?

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