The Bush Administration has
spent the last six years talking about, yet failing to fulfill its commitment
to, our troops and veterans. While touting its support for our servicemen and women,
the Administration has pursued policies that have stretched our military to the
breaking point, left our soldiers to shoulder the burden of its failed Iraq strategy, and fallen short of its responsibility to our veterans and wounded soldiers.
By contrast, since Democrats
gained majority control in the Senate, we have demonstrated our commitment to
honoring our country’s obligation to our servicemen and women. In less than
six months, Senate Democrats have taken significant steps to begin to reverse
the Bush Administration’s record of failure by calling for a change of course
in Iraq and providing funds to better support our troops fighting in Iraq and
Afghanistan, address critical equipment shortfalls, improve veterans’ access to
benefits, and enhance the quality of health care services for soldiers and
veterans.
Senate
Democrats’ New Direction for America: Advancing a New Strategy for Iraq
Senate Democrats demanded
a change of course in Iraq: to remove our troops from Iraq’s civil war and repair our dangerously overstretched military. The Bush Administration’s failed Iraq strategy
and mismanagement of our military have resulted in critical equipment and
training shortfalls; forced repeated deployments and extended deployments for
U.S. forces; led to recruiting and retention challenges; and left our country
without a strategic reserve. Democrats believe it is time to put an end to the
Administration’s flawed Iraq strategy and unsustainable military policies. In
the 2007 Emergency Supplemental conference report sent to the President
on May 1, Democrats included a provision that called for a gradual redeployment
of U.S. troops from Iraq, in conjunction with concerted efforts to train and
equip the Iraqi security forces and to build regional and international support
for the Iraqi government. The legislation directed the President, within 120
days of enactment, to begin to redeploy troops from Iraq, with a goal of having
only a limited number of troops remaining in the country on March 31, 2008.
With this provision, Democrats demanded a change in policy in Iraq that would transition the mission of U.S. forces and advance a new comprehensive economic,
diplomatic, and political strategy to bring stability to the country and bring
to a close the United States’ open-ended commitment in Iraq. Unfortunately, the President chose to veto this legislation, against the advice of
many military experts and the will of the American people.
Democrats remain
committed to forging a new direction in Iraq that will put an end to the Bush
Administration’s failed strategy and open-ended military commitment. In the second version of the 2007 Emergency
Supplemental bill, Democrats took a critical step forward in holding
the President and the Iraqi government accountable for Iraq’s future and
advancing the goal of changing course in Iraq. The bill conditions U.S.
economic support for the Iraqi government on its progress toward achieving key
political benchmarks, including: the formation of a Constitutional Review Committee
and the completion of the constitutional review; the implementation of
legislation to ensure the equitable distribution of the oil resources of the
people of Iraq; the implementation of legislation on procedures to form
semi-autonomous regions; and the implementation of legislation to establish an
Independent High Electoral Commission, provincial elections law, provincial
council authorities, and a date for provincial elections. The bill also
requires the President to report to Congress on the Iraqi government’s success
in meeting these benchmarks. If the established goals are not achieved, the
legislation would require, subject to a presidential waiver, that $1.6 billion
in economic support funding be withheld from the Iraqi government.
In the months ahead, Senate
Democrats will continue to take every opportunity to push for a change of
course in Iraq. While ensuring continued counter-terror operations inside Iraq
and further training of Iraqi security forces, Democrats’ comprehensive plan
for a phased withdrawal of U.S. combat troops will allow us to turn our
attention and resources to the more critical fight against al Qaeda and
affiliated terrorist networks, remove our troops from policing Iraq’s civil
war, and work to restore the readiness of our military forces.
Senate
Democrats’ New Direction for America: Supporting, Honoring, and Caring for Our
Troops
Democrats have provided
full support for our troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the 2007 Emergency Supplemental bill,
Democrats fully-funded the President’s requests for Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)
and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), which included funding to support the
troops currently deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as funds for OIF/OEF
escalation forces.
Senate Democrats have
worked to address critical National Guard equipment shortfalls. National Guard readiness has fallen to record lows
under the Bush Administration’s stewardship. According to General Steven Blum,
Chief of the National Guard Bureau, 88 percent of Guard units in the United States are rated as unready, a situation that he says is compromising the quality of
force training and limiting the Guard’s ability to quickly respond to domestic
disasters. Earlier this month, General Blum stated that Guard “equipment is at
an all-time low.” He reported that non-deployed National Guard units have just
53 percent of the equipment they need to respond to state emergencies and only
49 percent of the equipment they would need for combat. After years of Bush
Administration neglect, Senate Democrats have moved to fill in these dangerous
equipment shortfalls so that we may work to restore the readiness of our Guard
units. In the 2007 Emergency Supplemental bill, Senate Democrats
secured an additional $1 billion in funding, above the requested amount, to
address shortfalls in critical Guard equipment. (General Steven Blum, testimony
before the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves, 1/31/07; Associated
Press, 6/6/07)
Democrats have secured
funds to ensure better treatment for wounded soldiers. Under Bush Administration policies, soldiers have
struggled to get the quality medical care and treatment they deserve. They
have faced substandard conditions at Department of Defense and VA medical
facilities, endured long lines and bureaucratic delays in accessing health
care, and struggled to get critical mental health treatment. Democrats are
committed to reversing this record of neglect to ensure that our wounded
service members receive the quality care they deserve. In the 2007
Emergency Supplemental bill, Senate Democrats led the effort to provide $3
billion in funds for military health care, which is $1.9 billion above the
amount the President requested. In addition to providing funds for Walter Reed
and investing in military hospital improvements, the bill allocates $900
million for brain trauma injury (BTI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
treatment and research.
Senate Democrats have
provided additional funding to better protect our troops on the battlefield. According to the Pentagon, 70 percent of U.S. military casualties in Iraq are caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Although Marine
Corps officials have been requesting Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles
(MRAPs) – vehicles that reportedly could reduce IED casualties by two-thirds –
since February of 2005, it was not until March of this year that the Marine
Corps Commandant made MRAPs a top funding priority. The Marines are now
requesting 3,700 of these vehicles and the Army is seeking as many as 17,700
MRAPs. Senate Democrats have taken the lead to get additional MRAPs to our
troops in the field as soon as possible. In the 2007 Emergency Supplemental
Senate Democrats added $1.2 billion above the requested amount for a total of
$3 billion to provide our troops in Iraq with MRAP vehicles. These emergency funds
will ensure that an 2,000 additional MRAPs reach our troops by the end of this
year.
Senate
Democrats’ New Direction for America: Fulfilling Our Commitment to Veterans
Senate Democrats passed a
Revised Continuing Appropriations Resolution for Fiscal Year 2007 that fills
critical gaps in funding for veterans’ health care left behind by Republicans. Under the joint funding resolution, Senate
Democrats provided a total of $32 billion for the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) medical care, which is an increase of $3.5 billion over Fiscal
Year 2006 levels, and the funding level approved by the Republican-passed
Continuing Resolution during the last Congress. These funds will help to
improve mental health services, enhance inpatient and outpatient care for
veterans, and also allow the VA to better address its backlog of pending
benefits claims.
Senate Democrats secured
critical funds for veterans’ health care in the 2007 supplemental
appropriations bill. The 2007
Emergency Supplemental bill allocates nearly $1.8 billion in funds to the
VA, not requested by the President, to accommodate the increasing number of new
veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan, improve mental health and
readjustment counseling services, and fund new polytrauma centers for the
severely injured. These funds are critical to ensuring that the VA has the
capacity to care for the increasing number of veterans who suffer from
traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Senate Democrats led the
effort to provide $3.5 billion in increased funding to veterans for Fiscal Year
2008. The Senate’s 2008 Budget
Resolution allocated $43.1 billion for veterans, which is an increase of $3.5
billion over the President’s request. This amount represents 98 percent of the
funding level requested in the Independent Budget, a plan developed by four
leading veterans’ service organizations. The resolution also rejected the
President’s proposal to impose new fees and higher co-payments on certain
veterans, which, according to veterans’ service organizations, would have
driven an estimated 200,000 veterans to leave the system and discouraged more
than one million veterans from enrolling in VA health care.
