Posted on 05/22/2005 2:19:10 PM PDT by SmithL
ALBANY - U.S. Rep Barbara Lee reiterated her opposition to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and accused the Bush administration of shortchanging veterans by $3 billion in the next federal budget.
Lee made her remarks Saturday at a 90-minute town hall meeting on veterans' issues at the Albany community center.
Lee said the Iraq war has cost the country $300 billion and she expects a request for more money in the fall.
The country needs to spend billions more to provide medical care and mental health services for veterans, she said.
"Three to 5 billion dollars is nothing," Lee said. "It's a drop in the bucket given corporate giveaways, tax cuts and the war (costs)."
If approved by Congress, the Bush administration's $2.6 trillion 2005-06 budget will boost spending for national security while scaling back or eliminating hundreds of domestic programs.
Lee said the proposed budget would mean layoffs for about 800 employees who process veterans' medical claims, a move that would increase the wait many veterans already endure, she said. About 106,000 veterans wait six months or more for decisions on their medical claims, she said.
The proposed budget includes $2.8 billion for new buildings in Iraq and Afghanistan, Lee said, but does nothing to improve the seismic safety of the medical buildings where veterans receive care.
"The rhetoric is pretty," Lee said of the Bush administration, "but what they do in reality is pretty dismal in regard to veterans."
Congressional Democrats have proposed an alternative budget that includes $2.5 billion more spending for veterans' health care than the Bush administration, Lee said.
Lee's congressional district stretches from Castro Valley to Albany. She made international headlines in 2001 terrorist attacks as the lone member of Congress to vote against giving the president the authority to use force in Afghanistan.
Lee's remarks met a warm reception from the 25 or so people who attended the town hall meeting.
In response to questions, Lee said she believed the military would continue its aggressive recruiting, but did not foresee a draft because of little public or political support.
She also expressed concern about the possible loss of a medical center for veterans in Livermore. The United States Department of Veterans Affairs is considering moving the outpatient services to another location.
In Oakland, the Department of Veterans Affairs is considering consolidating an outpatient clinic on Martin Luther King Jr. Way with a substance abuse and mental health clinic at the former Oakland Army base and bringing them both to Alameda or another location in Oakland. The lease for the clinic on Martin Luther King Jr. Way expires in October 2007.
At the meeting, one man said it would be more difficult to reach outpatient services by bus in Alameda than if it remained at its current site.
Finally, Albany Vice Mayor Allan Maris asked people to attend a Memorial Day concert with the Albany adult jazz band at the city's Veterans Memorial Building at Memorial Park at 7:30 p.m. \Wednesday. The event will include veterans ceremonies and inspiring patriotic music.
"If you go, you will be very pleased that you went."
If Rep Lee stop opposing illegal immigration measures and allow the Border Patrol and military to close the border, the savings in reducing overburden schools, overburdern health care, crime and increased revenues from taxes as wages are no longer depressed by illegal labor, would be more than ample to cover any increases for benefits to the veterans. She is a nut for advocating more benefits and support policies that suppress the income to support it. Liberalism is a mental disease.
What was Saddam trying to do just before we decided to go into Iraq ? His last great gesture of defiance was to organize a slowdown by OPEC. Imagine if Saddam was still in power right now, the United Nations was completely bribed by Oil for Food scams, gas in the U.S. would be around $5.00 per gallon and the U.S. would have almost no logistical positioning to potentially force the Iranian Mullahs to abandon their nuclear ambitions.
You think we're going to force them to stop? Syria and Iran have us tied down trying to hold Iraq. What are you going to conquer Iran with? More countries will continue to aquire nuclear weapons. Conventional invasion is disappearing as an option.
Actually, by attacking Iraq with an insurgency, Syria and Iran are stupidly making their positions worse. Something you can always count on when Mullahs and Fanatical Terrorists run a country. By attacking us in Iraq, they are ensuring that the US Military presence remains. Very stupid move. But hey, these fanatics let their feelings rule their heads.
What are you going to conquer Iran with?
No need to conquer. There are numerous options available. They have been discussed here on other threads.
More countries will continue to aquire nuclear weapons. Conventional invasion is disappearing as an option.
We may need to invade Syria eventually. Damascus is a sitting duck right now with little protection from a US invasion across the Syria/Iraq border. Thats why the Syrians had to pull troops out of Lebanon. To protect the back side of Damascus. Took em a long time though to properly analyze their predicament. The baath party of Syria obviously was not expecting an invasion from Iraq.
Actually, it's costing us KIA, WIA and reduced recruiting in the ground forces, not to mention hundreds of billions of dollars we have to borrow from Chinese central banks.
We may need to invade Syria eventually.
And on what pre-text will the administration get Congress to approve that? Sorry, this ain't Risk.
The reduced recruiting is being caused by the attack of the US progressive media. Actually a two pronged internal attack. The constant brainwashing of the American populace that this war is a failure and the 'investigative' reporting on the tactics used by US military recruiters. Not a bad internal attack. We have seen better though. You first use the media to brainwash potential recruits that the war is a failure. Then they 'investigate' the tactics of recruiters. Which were obviously affected by the lies the progressive media has been spinning.
Dont worry about a pretext to invade Syria. That country is being run by Baathists socialists. They are stupid. Take Saddam for example, he handed us the pretext for invasion on a silver platter.
Since when did Democrats care about veterans?
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