Veterans vow to fight Bachmann budget cuts
Published: February 2, 2011
WASHINGTON – Tea Party favorite Rep. Michele Bachmann earlier this week unveiled her latest plan to rein in government spending, proposing more than $400 billion in budget cuts in lieu of raising the nation’s debt ceiling again. In a statement, the Minnesota Republican said she’s calling on lawmakers to “do the hard work of making real and necessary cuts in federal spending.”
But the proposal immediately upset veterans groups, because it includes $4.5 billion in cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs, an area where most conservatives on Capitol Hill have been reluctant to even suggest cuts.
“No way, no how, will we let this proposal get any traction in Congress," said Richard Eubank, national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. in a statement. "There are certain things you do not do when our nation is at war, and at the top of that list is not caring for our wounded and disabled servicemen and women when they return home."
The proposal would cap increases in VA health care spending and reduce disability compensation to veterans receiving Social Security disability payments. AMVETS’s acting legislative director Christina Roof called that latter proposal unacceptable.
“The benefits are totally unrelated and it’s unfair to strip our disabled veterans of the entitlements they earned in service to our nation,” she said in a statement. “We also believe it is not the time to discuss freezing funding levels when we are at war on multiple fronts. Our nation cannot afford to shirk its responsibilities to our veterans by balancing the budget on their backs.”
AMVETS officials said they met with Bachmann on Tuesday, but were still concerned with the proposals. Officials from Bachmann’s office said the spending cuts were designed to spark discussion about fiscal responsibility, but VFW officials said they were a slap in the face of veterans.
"I want the congresswoman to join us in a tour of the Minneapolis VA Medical Center and Poly Trauma Center the next time she's in her home district to witness firsthand the great work the VA does every day to heal their wounds and ease their pain,” Eubank said. “Then I want her to look those disabled veterans in the eye and tell them their service and sacrifice is too expensive for the nation to bear.”
Bachmann’s budget cuts also include about $15 billion in defense spending, but those savings will come from cuts already outlines by Defense Secretary Robert Gates last month.
