IAVA Daily Brief 06.18.09

IAVA Daily Brief 06.18.09
Posted by Michelle McCarthy [1] on June 18 [2]

Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking?  Follow us on Twitter at @iavapressroom [4]!

MUST READS

(1) Number of VA claims poised to hit 1 million [5]

The Associated Press reports today that the Veterans Affairs Department appears poised to hit a milestone it would rather avoid: 1 million claims to process.  According to VA data, the department has more than 722,000 claims and more than 172,000 appeals it currently is processing, for a total of about 900,000. That is up from about 800,000 total claims in January.  On Thursday afternoon, VA officials will testify before the House Veterans Affairs Committee about causes for the mounting backlog.  Click here [6] to watch the live webcast startng at 2:00 PM.

(2) IAVA Joins Pelosi, Lawmakers to Acknowledge Progress on Three Top Issues for Veterans [7]

At a special press conference on Capitol Hill Wednesday, IAVA joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, other lawmakers and the National Military Families Association (NMFA)  to applauding the House of Representatives for taking action on three critical issues impacting veterans and military families: advance funding for VA health care, retroactive stop-loss payments, and Post-9/11 GI Bill transferability to the children of service members who died while on active-duty since 9/11.  “With these bills, the VA can improve health care access for six million veterans, thousands of troops will receive the overtime stop-loss compensation they deserve, and the children of servicemembers who have made the ultimate sacrifice can pursue an education,” said IAVA Executive Director Paul Rieckhoff. “But these battles are not yet won. IAVA and veterans of all generations will continue to push forward on these issues until the bills have passed the full Congress and the ink from the President’s signature is dry.”  Click here [7] to read the full statement from IAVA.

(3) Older Recruits Challenge Army and Vice Versa [8]

The New York Times is running a feature today on the growing rate of over-35 enlisted in the U.S. Army.  In part due to rising unemployment amid the recession, officials report that the older recruits are presenting new challenges especially where basic training is concerned; however, they also tend to bring more technical skills and maturity, are easier to instruct and are often more committed than teenage soldiers.  “I’ve just tried to keep my head down, keep my mouth shut and not wring necks,” said one recruit, 38, who recently joined the military for a three-year stint after losing his job during the housing market crash.  Since the start of 2009, the Army has recruited about 3,800 soldiers over age 35, a still relatively small number compared to the 80,000 the Army recruits annually.  At present, the Army is the only service that accepts recruits over age 35 (the maximum age is 35 in the Navy, 28 in the Marine Corps and 27 in the Air Force.)

(4) Study: Slow decisions hurt help for Marines [9]

According to an internal military study published by a civilian Marine Corps official, hundreds of U.S. Marines have been killed or injured by roadside bombs in Iraq because Marine Corps bureaucrats refused an urgent request in 2005 from battlefield commanders for blast-resistant vehicles.  The study authored by Franz Gayl accuses the service of "gross mismanagement" that delayed deliveries of the mine-resistant, ambush-protected trucks for more than two years, with cost being a driving factor in the decision to turn down the request for MRAPs.  "If the mass procurement and fielding of MRAPs had begun in 2005 in response to the known and acknowledged threats at that time, as the [Marine Corps] is doing today, hundreds of deaths and injuries could have been prevented," Gayl writes.  Gayl, who has clashed with his superiors in the past and filed for whistle-blower protection last year, used official Marine Corps documents, e-mails, briefing charts, memos, congressional testimony and news articles to make his case.

AFGHANISTAN

The Associated Press reported Wednesday that an as yet unlreased report on a deadly airstrike [10] in Afghanistan's Farah Province on May 4th calls for better training for air and ground forces to reduce civilian casualties that have undermined the counterinsurgency campaign.  Speaking on condition of anonymity, Defense officials said the report recommends periodic refresher training throughout troops' tours of duty in the war zone so they are prepared for situations that have previously resulted in civilian deaths.  Afghan officials claim that the incident in question killed 140 civilians; the report holds to earlier U.S. estimates that 30 civilians and 60 to 65 Taliban fighters were killed.

IRAQ

Ahead of a July 31^st deadline to pullback U.S. troops from urban centers, the Iraqi police force [11] in Mosul is investigating two of their own in the killing of an American soldier, Lt. William Emmert, and his interpreter as well as wounding five others.  According to Col. Gary Volesky, commander of U.S. troops in the province, the two policeman – an officer and a sergeant- were arrested last week by U.S. and Iraqi forces and later handed over to Iraqi custody.  Both are believed to have returned to Mosul just a few weeks after the initially fleeing the city following the attack.  Under the terms of a security agreement that took effect at the beginning of 2009,  Iraqi authorities are charged with the task of prosecuting the policemen; but in recent days, they informed American officials that the two suspects have not appeared before a judge — the first step toward prosecution — because of doubts not only that they were the gunmen, but that they were policemen at all.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

Duke University [12] announced Wednesday it will participate in the Post 9/11 GI Bill's Yellow Ribbon Program.  Accordng to Duke President Richard Brodhead, eligible military veterans pursuing a degree at its schools will receive as much as $770,000 in new annual financial support from the university, along with matching support from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.  Brodhead said he discussed the program at length while meeting in Washington, D.C. recently with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki, a Duke alumnus.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

A day after House Democrats passed the Administration's $106 billion war supplemental bill, the Senate took the bill [13] up for debate Wednesday with Majority Leader Harry Reid pledging it would be the last time Congress goes through the ordeal of passing an off-the-books, expensive bill to fund two wars.  As previously mentioned, the bill includes $534 million for some 185,000 service members who have had their enlistments involuntarily extended since Sept. 11th through the military's stop-loss policy.  One possible obstacle to the bill's Senate passage was removed Wednesday when Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said he would no longer block action because the final version removed a ban, backed by Graham and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), on releasing photos depicting U.S. troops abusing detainees.  However, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) is expected to raise a point of order against a provision inserted in the compromise providing $1 billion for a “cash for clunkers” program that gives consumers government rebates when they trade in old vehicles for more fuel efficient models.

Meanwhile, at the urging of Rep. Duncan D. Hunter [14] (R-CA), a Marine combat veteran who served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan and was elected to Congress in November, the armed services committee has asked for a review of trends in awarding the Medal of Honor to determine if the low number of awards in the current wars is the result of “inadvertent subjective bias amongst commanders.”  According to Hunter, he wants to the Committee to look for the reasons behind not just fewer nominations, but also a trend since the Vietnam War in which the only Medal of Honor awards have been for people who died during an act of valor.

CONGRESSIONAL SCHEDULE

THE SENATE

The Senate will convene  at 9:45 am.

SENATE FLOOR ACTIVITY of  INTEREST

• Morning Business for 1 hour, with senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each. The Majority will control the first 30 minutes and the Republicans will control the next 30 minutes.
• Following morning business, the Senate will turn to the consideration of S. Con. Res. 26, a concurrent resolution relating to slavery. There will be 1 hour for debate prior to a vote on adoption of the conference report. We expect that vote to be a voice vote.
• Upon disposition of the concurrent resolution, the Senate will resume consideration of the conference report to accompany H.R.2346 [15], Emergency Supplemental Appropriations.

FUTURE COMMITTEE HEARINGS  of  INTEREST

• June 24, 2009 SVAC will hold a hearing on VHA’s quality management.  9:30 a.m.; 418 Russell (Prudhomme)

THE HOUSE of  REPRESENTATIVES

The House will convene for a pro forma session

HOUSE FLOOR ACTIVITY of  INTEREST

• Complete Consideration of H.R. 2847 [16] -  Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010 (Rep. Mollohan – Appropriations)
• H.Res. 520 [17] - Impeaching Samuel B. Kent, judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, for high crimes and misdemeanors (Rep. Conyers – Judiciary) (Privileged Resolution)

HOUSE COMMITTEE HEARINGS of  INTEREST

• June 18, 2009 - House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Hearing:  Addressing the Backlog: Can VA Manage One Million Claims?  2:00 p.m.; 334 Cannon HOB

FUTURE COMMITTEE HEARINGS of  INTEREST

• July 14, 2009  - Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Hearing: Examining the Progress of Electronic Health Record Interoperability Between VA and DoD  10:00 a.m.; 334 Cannon HOB
• July 30, 2009  - Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Hearing:  The Implications of VA’s Limited Scope of Gulf War Illness Research  10:00 a.m.; 334 Cannon HOB 

WHAT THE BLOGS ARE SAYING

Outlet: Daily Kos

Title: ACTION: IAVA fights for backpay for stop-lossed veterans [18]

Date: Wednesday, June 17th

Representative: IAVA, Paul Rieckhoff

 

Outlet: PotShot Politics

Title: IAVA Announces House Stop-Loss Bill [19]

Date: Wednesday, June 17th

Representative: IAVA, Paul Rieckhoff

 

Outlet: Anonymous Is A Woman: Politics and Religion and Culture

Title: Connolly Provides Financial Protections for Military Personnel [20]

Date: Wednesday, June 17th

Representative: IAVA