Bush will forget about Vets and those who are still serving
In an artlicle in the Boston Globe the President insulted a man whose service was literally above and beyond the call of duty; in fact he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his service during Vietnam. The man? Retired Air Force Colonel George "Bud" Day, an ex-POW who simply asked Bush one question: why are the benefits we thought we were getting after doing our part mysteriously disappearing?
''I said to him, `Mr. President, I'm Colonel Bud Day. You know your campaign [promise], a promise made is a promise kept, is being broken.' His eyes just glazed over,'' Day said. ''He really had no idea what I was talking about.''
But it gets better....
...Day said he explained the circumstances of the case. Lawyers from the current Justice Department have defended the '95 decision in court (to not pay support/health care for retirees), so Day was hoping Bush would withdraw support for the case. Instead, Day said the president told him, ''`Colonel, you really need to talk to [Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony] Principi
I can not believe that anyone in the service voted for this guy
If you are not familiar with this matter, it revolves around a Bush I/Clinton-era ruling that veterans of the WWII-Vietnam era are not entitled to get medical care that they had been promised at retirement for putting in 20 or more "good" years of service. These promises were made to the vets by their recruiters at the time of their enlistment/entrance onto active duty and although many, many service people would always half-joke about their recruiters "lying" to them, this was one of the few things the average soldier/sailor/airman/marine never felt was a false promise. Why? Because when that recruiter had joined up however many years ago, they had been promised the exact same thing. So it was as much an implied social contract, as one everyone knew was written somewhere, but since the average S/S/A/M did not
spend endless hours poring through the Federal Register, they just figured it had to be there somewhere, and got on with doing their job as professionals for a grateful nation.
As it turns out, money (and politics) speak much louder than promises. As the costs of keeping their word became more apparent, the government decided that the recruiters who were tasked to fill those slots in the armed services had no standing to make the promises and thus obligate the government to provide for service members who served 20+ years. Is there something wrong with this picture?
"Day said Bush is violating his oft-repeated campaign pledge to veterans: ''A promise made is a promise kept.
I still can't figure out this whole Vote Republican thing in the service, I never had it as good as I did when Carter was President, but then he was a real line officer and Annapolis graduate, no wonder the right-wing Chickenhawks hate him.
He served, honorably.
posted by Jo Fish on 12.24.02 at 10:36 AM
Comments:
LETTER FROM COLONEL BUD DAY
Dear Joe:
The major issue in the Swiftboat stories is, and always has been, what John Kerry did in 1971 after he returned from Vietnam. Kerry cast a long dark shadow over all Vietnam Veterans with his outright perjury before the Senate concerning atrocities in Vietnam. His stories to the Senate committee were absolute lies..fabrications..perjury..fantasies, with NO substance. That dark shadow has defamed the entire Vietnam War veteran population, and gave "Aid and Comfort" to our enemies..the Vietnamese Communists. Kerry's stories were outright fabrications, and were intended for political gain with the radical left..McGovern, Teddy and Bobby Kennedy followers, Jane Fonda, Tom Hayden, and the radical left who fantasized that George McGovern was going to be elected in 1972. Little wonder that returning soldiers from Vietnam were spit upon and castigated as "baby killers".
A returned war hero said so. Kerry cut a dashing figure as a war hero, lots of medals, and returned home because of multiple war wounds..even a silver star. His Senate testimony confirmed what every hippie had been chanting on the streets.."Hey hey LBJ..How many kids did you kill today"????? He obviously was running for political office in 1971.
Until Lt. John O' Neil, himself a Swifboat commander, spoke out before the 1972 elections against Kerry's outright deceptions, there was no one from the Swiftboat scene that could contradict Kerry's self serving lies.
I was a POW of the Vietnamese in Hanoi in 1971, and I am aware that the testimony of John Kerry, the actions of Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden, and the radical left; all caused the commies to conclude that if they hung on, they would win. North Vietnamese General Bui Tin commented that every day the Communist leadership listened to world news over the radio to follow the growth of the anti-war movement. Visits to Hanoi by Jane Fonda and Ramsey Clark gave them confidence to hold in the face of battlefield reverses. The guts of it was that propaganda from the anti-war group was part of their combat strategy.
While the Commies were hanging on, innumerable U.S. Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Air Force members were being killed in combat. Every battle wound to Americans after Kerry's misdirected testimony is related to Kerry's untruthfulness. John Kerry contributed to every one of these deaths with his lies about U.S. atrocities in Vietnam. He likewise defamed the U.S. with our allies and supporters. His conduct also extended the imprisonment of the Vietnam Prisoners of War, of which I was one. I am certain of at least one POW death after his testimony, which might have been prevented with an earlier release of the POWs.
My friend and room mate Senator John S. McCain denounced the Swiftboat video by John O'Neil. I have a different take on the Swiftboat tape and disagree with my good friend John.
John Kerry opened up his character as a war hero reporting for duty to the country with a hand salute...and his band of brothers..of which he was the chief hero. Most of his convention speech was about John Kerry..............Vietnam hero, and his band of brothers. John Kerry's character is not only fair game, it is the primary issue. He wants to use Bill Clinton's "is", as an answer to his lack of character.
The issue is trust. Can anyone trust John Kerry?? "Never lie, cheat or steal" is the West Point motto. When a witness perjures himself at trial, the judge notes that his testimony lacks credibility. Should we elect a known proven liar to lead us in wartime??
I draw a direct comparison of General Benedict Arnold of the Revolutionary War, to Lieutenant John Kerry. Both went off to war, fought, and then turned against their country. General Arnold crossed over to the British for money and position. John Kerry crossed over to the Vietnamese with his assistance to the anti-war movement, and his direct liaison with the Vietnamese diplomats in Paris. His reward. Political gain. Senator..United States. His record as a Senator for twenty years has been pitiful. Conjure up, if you will, one major bill that he has sponsored.
John Kerry for President? Ridiculous. Unthinkable. Unbelievable. Outrageous.
Col. Geo. "Bud" Day,
Medal of Honor,
Vietnam POW 1967- 1973,
USMC- USA- USAF- Attorney 1949-2004
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