VietNow
National Magazine
The Legislative Report
Sometimes
it may seem boring to keep paying attention
to what's going on in Congress, but those
bills and committee meetings in Washington
and your own state capitol can be very
important.
By Joe Lewis – VietNow National
Legislative Committee Chairman
Joe
Lewis |
|
Hup
two, three, four. Let’s
hit the legislative road. What the heck
is going on here you might be asking yourself?
Are you thinking that I’m having
a flashback, and revisiting my past?
Well, if that’s what it takes to
get
things moving, then so be it.
Since the
2007 VietNow National Convention, we have
added another person to the Legislative
Committee. Bruce Jacobsen of the Rockford
Charter Chapter has joined us as one of
our committee members. Bruce, Sam and Sandy
Veer, and Rose and I have been busy presenting
the VietNow legislative stance to our elected
representatives.
With a little help from
National Director John Bates, U.S. Rep.,
Don Manzullo, R-Illinois, has signed on
as
a cosponsor to H.RES. 111. It should be
noted that on this same day, four other
representatives also signed on as cosponsors.
There
are several bills in the United States
Congress that we need to muster our members
and other veterans behind.
H.Res.
111, which
calls for the establishment of a select
committee in the U.S. House of Representatives
for the primary purpose of getting answers
to the POW/MIA issue. Directly and indirectly,
this issue has both a positive and a negative
impact upon the legal residents of the
United States. Let’s look at the
effects of the passage or defeat of this
House Resolution.
If this bill passes, the
House of Representatives will establish
a “Select Committee
on POW and MIA Affairs.” What can
we expect when this bill passes and a committee
is set up? The least to be expected is
the resolution of numerous reports of our
POW/MIAs from World War II, Korea, Vietnam,
the Cold War Missions, and Gulf War I and
Gulf
War II. The minimum that we should expect
with the passage of this bill is for facts
and fiction to be separated from each other.
H.RES.
111, gives the following timeline once
passed, “Expiration – The
select committee and all authority granted
in this resolution shall expire 30 days
after the filing of the final report of
the select committee with the House, or
just prior to noon on January 5, 2009,
whichever occurs first.” In reality,
with this timeline, the committee will
not be operational long enough to complete
the entire task they are charged with completing.
If
this bill fails, what is the message we’re
sending our armed forces? Very simply put, “We
do not give a crap about you, or about
getting you home to your loved ones if
you are captured or become missing.” Is
this the message that we want to give to
those who “volunteer” to
be a part of our armed forces? Not in my
book. But why not? This is the message
that we have been sending to this nation
since World
War I. I could go on with facts and figures
about how many service members have gone
missing since “The War to End All
Wars.” But I’ll leave this
to the VietNow National POW/MIA Chair,
Bill Kessling.
H.R.
1370 and H.R. 1041,
(introduced in the House) - “To amend
title 38, United States Code, to provide
for an assured adequate level of funding
for veterans health care. Mandatory Funding
for Veterans Act of 2007.” This bill
calls for mandatory funding for the Department
of Veterans Affairs. Do
we need this? Yes.
H.R.
972. - “To
provide compensation to individuals who,
during the Vietnam conflict, were employees
of the Federal Government or contractor
employees of the Department of Defense
and suffered disability or death from exposure
to Agent Orange.” As
we discussed on the convention floor this
year, this legislation is needed for those
civilian
contractors who worked in Vietnam, Panama,
and the Korean DMZ.
H.R.
303, and H.R. 333. These bills are referred to as the Retired
Pay Restoration Act. “To amend Title
10, United States Code, to permit certain
additional retired members of the Armed
Forces who have a service-connected disability
to receive both
disability compensation from the Department
of Veterans Affairs for their disability
and either retired pay by reason of their
years of military service or Combat-Related
Special Compensation and to eliminate the
phase-in period under current law with
respect to such concurrent receipt.”
Our retired veterans need the passage of
these bills.
H.R.
1642. Homeless Veterans
Housing at Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center
Promotion Act. (Referred to the Senate
Committee after being received from the
House.) “An
Act to direct the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to ensure that, to the extent possible,
an enhanced-use lease for a homeless housing
project at the Department of Veterans Affairs
facility known as the Sepulveda Ambulatory
Care Center, located in North Hills, California,
shall provide that such housing project
shall be maintained as a sober living facility
for veterans only, and for other purposes.”
This
bill is now in the Senate and will shortly
be on its way to the President.
There you have it. These are the top seven
legislative bills in the United States
House of Representatives. Contact your
local legislative representative and keep
requesting their support and cosponsorship
of each of these bills.
The motto of VietNow
is “Veterans
Helping Veterans.” These aren’t
just words. This motto describes who and
what VietNow is and stands for. Time
to rally the troops to help our brothers
and sisters.
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VietNow
National
1835 Broadway – Rockford, Illinois
61104
800.837.VNOW – 815.227.5100
vnnatl@inwave.com
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