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Gimme a break. Obama can't even pronounce the word "Corpsmen". He doesn't give a shit about our veterans, never did.Is this another GOP witch hunt? Remember, these people blocked first responders at 9/11 from having health care for 10 years and blocked Obama from investigating BP. For them to pretend to care about Veterans is insulting. Veterans make up a significant part of those 4 million whose food stamps were taken away by the GOP. 85% were children, veterans with disabilities and seniors.
Isn't it great the way we treat our veterans, especially under this administration?
Congress looking into VA bonuses amid agency problems | Fox News
The Army National Guard has deployed thousands of soldiers on orders that restrict accrual of GI Bill benefits during the last two years, more than doubling a recent count across all of the military's reserve components. The Pentagon has used the authorization 4,705 times since 2014, according to data from each reserve component released to Stars and Stripes, including the new count of 2,925 from the Army Guard released Monday by the National Guard Bureau.
The number of troops deployed is likely close to the 4,705 authorizations. Some might have deployed more than once under the authorization, which was first used in 2014. A National Guard Bureau spokeswoman said she was unsure if it was possible to know how many, if any, soldiers deployed more than once under the authorization. Every reserve and guard component of the U.S. military has used Title 10, authorization 12304b -- an authority to mobilize reservists for operations without education benefits that normally accumulate during active duty.
The overall count is more than double the total reported Nov. 25, which did not include data from the Army National Guard. The National Guard Bureau produced its data following the report, which included criticism from reservists, lawmakers and advocacy groups about the growing use of an authorization that strips reservists of benefits like pre- and post-deployment health care and the GI Bill.
Leaders from the Reserve Officers Association, a Washington advocacy group, said the congressional authorization was requested by the Pentagon to scale back spending on benefits while maintaining deployment readiness. Nearly a million reservists have deployed since Sept. 11, 2001, according to the Pentagon's Defense Manpower Data Center. The Post-9/11 GI Bill, a benefit paid by the Department of Veterans Affairs, is based on a sliding scale of active-duty service since Sept. 11, 2001. Tuition and housing payments increase as active-duty service grows.
Army Guard Deployed Thousands While Restricting GI Bill Benefits | Military.com
A relatively new and obscure deployment code, a measure the Pentagon created in 2014 to scale back spending on benefits, is the reason. By law, reservists involuntarily mobilized under Title 10, section 12304b, do not receive credit for the GI Bill while they are activated. The Post-9/11 GI Bill is paid out by the amount of active-duty time racked up. Reservists say deployments are in high demand in part because education benefits will grow much faster than relying on drill time. Nearly a million reservists have deployed since Sept. 11, 2001, according to data from the Pentagon's Defense Manpower Data Center. Marine Sgt. William Hubbard is one of nearly 600 Marine reservists affected since 2014. He deployed to Honduras in May as part of the Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force, a rapid-response unit based in Honduras to strengthen security in the region and respond to natural disasters, like Hurricane Matthew in October.
His civilian job lends him a special perspective on restricting access to the GI Bill. He is the vice president of government affairs at Student Veterans of America, a national veterans advocacy group that focuses on education policy. Hubbard said fellow Marines in Honduras are stunned as the word has slowly spread through the ranks. Most incorrectly believed they would receive seven to nine months' worth of credit for GI Bill benefits, including Hubbard, a benefits legislation expert. "Reservists serve their country like any other component, and they have to balance civilian employment, education and the military," Hubbard said. "And to say they don't rate the full benefit? It doesn't add up." Every reserve component has used authorization 12304b since its creation; 1,780 reservists from across the military have deployed under the code, according to data from each reserve service branch released to Stars and Stripes.
A military photo illustration depicts a service member studying
The actual number is certainly higher. That count does not include the Army National Guard. The National Guard Bureau was unable to produce data on mobilizations under that authorization after weeks of requests. The Army Reserves accounted for the largest share with 1,100. The Air National Guard has activated 87 airmen since 2014. The Navy Reserves, with six activations, used authorization 12304b instead of more common authorities to learn its unique procedure and to retain that institutional knowledge, said Cullen James, a Navy Reserves spokesman. James and other Navy spokesmen could not say how the mobilization of individual sailors is made under 12304b, referring questions to Pentagon officials with insight into manpower and personnel staffing issues. Those repeated requests also went unfulfilled.
Capt. Christopher Scholl, director of Navy Reserve public affairs, said sailors are informed the authorization lacks certain benefits when they are mobilized. Susan Lukas, director of legislative and military policy at the Reserve Officers Association, a Washington advocacy group, said Tuesday that she doubted that many reservists are aware of 12304b. "People go into it kind of blind," Lukas said.
Unequal benefits?
Isn't it great the way we treat our veterans, especially under this administration?
Congress looking into VA bonuses amid agency problems | Fox News
