GOP set up again in Senate

Last year, the Republicans in Congress succumbed to that “bi-partisan” thing when they all signed on to the cut in cost of living allowances for retirees, disabled veterans and their survivors. So they took it in the shorts and now they’re scrambling to get their reputation for supporting the troops back. But, Harry Reid and Bernie Sanders has something for them, according to the Washington Post;

Lawmakers from both parties have proposed repealing the pension cut with various bills, some of which would replace the savings with reductions in other areas such as spending on Egypt and Pakistan or Saturday mail delivery from the U.S. Postal Service.

Sen. Bernard Sanders (I-Vt.) has introduced an omnibus Veterans Affairs bill that would eliminate the pension cut and expand certain veterans benefits, such as dental and medical care, education and caretaker stipends. The legislation would cost $30 billion over 10 years, according to the lawmaker.

Sanders said last month that he is open to paying for the measure with savings from winding down overseas contingency operations, formerly known as the global war on terror.

Along with restoring the cuts to COLA, Sanders has included more spending, so that restoring cuts would actually cost more than it would otherwise. No fiscally responsible member of the GOP would vote for that, so Republicans will be blamed once again for the cuts if Sander’s measure should fail. And that “savings” from ending the war on terror is a mythical beast which will never make an appearance, like that “peace dividend” we heard so much about in the 90s.

The group, Concerned Veterans of America agrees with me;

The Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act of 2014 (S.1950), a new omnibus bill introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), would vastly and prematurely expand access to veterans benefits (regardless of disability status), driving up costs and creating further delays in a VA system that is already failing to meet veterans needs. S.1950 does replace the military retirement COLA cuts, a much needed fix; but it does so with $30 billion in additional spending, paid for by taking from war funds. As a result, CVA opposes the Sanders bill, and instead supports S.1977 — an updated version of Senator Kelly Ayotte’s Honor Our Promise Act. S.1977 also repeals the COLA cuts, but does not increase spending and does not divert much-needed war funding.

Unfortunately, Ayotte’s bill won’t get past Harry Reid.

Category: Congress sucks