House Democrats cut unemployment extension to fund wars
Posted by kandylini on June 4, 2008
Proving yet again that there’s only one political party in the U.S., The War Party.
By John Byrne, The Raw Story.
Seeking to find a way to win over fiscally conservative “Blue Dog” members of their own caucus, House Democrats are planning to ax a 13-week extension of unemployment benefits to find a way to pay for the Iraq war.
The move comes against the wishes of the Senate: the unemployment benefit passed without incident there, with 75 senators supporting the final bill.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) told the Washington Post yesterday that the unemployment insurance provision would “probably not” be part of the final package of war and domestic spending.
The bill provides funding for President Bush’s Iraq and Afghan wars. It also provides a new educational benefit for military servicemembers — at $52 billion. The Senate has passed Bush’s war bill already, at $250 billion for 10 years; the House bill settles at $165 billion, and also includes funding for some domestic measures.
Bush and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) oppose the military educational benefit, saying it is too expensive and will drain troops from active service. The benefit, introduced by Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), offers enough money to cover all university charges, up to the cost of the most expensive public university in a veteran’s home state.
Hoyer told the Post the final version of the bill won’t come to the House floor until at least next week, while members negotiate between the chambers.
With Reuters
BOB said
WHY ARE YOU CUTTING THE UNEMPLOYMENT EXTENSION OUT OF THE BILL? MYSELF AND THOUSANDS OF OTHERS CANNOT FIND A JOB!! MY UNEMPLOYMENT CHECKS HAVE BEEN EXHAUSTED FOR FIVE WEEKS NOW AND I AM SCARED AND GETTING INTO DEEP DEBT. I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR A JOB EVER SINCE I LOST MY JOB. WE ARE NOT PEOPLE ON WELFARE. WE HAVE WORKED ALL OUR LIVES AND NOW WE NEED MORE TIME TO FIND A JOB AND THE GOVERNMENT IS NOT GOING TO HELP US!!I AM COMPLETELY DISGUSTED WITH OUR GOVERNMENT. IT’S GETTING TO THE POINT WHERE THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN GET HELP IS IF YOU LOSE YOUR HOME, CAR EVERYTHING YOU WORKED ALL YOUR LIFE FOR TO FINALLY GET HELP AND THAT IS CALLED WELFARE. I AM VERY ANGRY AND DEPRESSED RIGHT NOW. THE GOVERNMENT HAS TO HELP US. WE DESERVE TO BE HELPED BECAUSE WE HAVE WORKED ALL OUR LIVES.
kandylini said
I’m sorry to hear about that, and it makes me sad that there’s thousands of people in your situation.