Legion Splits With VFW Over GI Bill Cuts, Transfer Rules Will Tighten
Two of the largest veterans organizations are split over GI Bill cuts; VFW does not oppose cuts impacting transferability while the Legion is 100 percent opposed. Essentially, some budgetary goals will be reached by cutting overall payouts to veterans by restricting access to the GI Bill’s transferability.
Department of Defense officials recently released a plan to limit GI Bill access. Starting in July 2019, DOD will limit a service member’s ability to transfer his or her GI Bill to a family member – – they can only transfer the benefit if they have fewer than 16 years of combined military service.
DOD says the new policy will adversely impact around 9 percent of career military members who have not transferred their benefits by their 16th year of service. DOD’s director of government relations for families, Eileen Huck, said frustration from the cut was “unfortunate” and acknowledged that “many service members and families are understandably upset.”
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For those service members impacted, not receiving the benefit will result in each impacted family losing out on around $50,000 in earned benefits that were inadvertently not transferred.
Basically, DOD decided to screw 9 percent of military members to score points with accountant bean counters who ordered reductions in overall GI Bill usage. Tough luck?
“The American Legion is 100 percent opposed to the curtailment of veterans’ earned benefits,” said Joseph M. Plenzler, the Legion’s director of media relations. “We understand the minimum time in service for transferability for retention purposes. That makes sense,” said Plenzler. “But the 16-year cap on the transferability significantly limits a veteran’s ability to execute the full economic potential of that benefit in a way that best suits the veteran and his or her family.”
The Legion expects the department “to consult with the veteran community before unilaterally making sweeping decisions that impact all of us. This is a bad policy and our veterans deserve better. We are disappointed,” Plenzler said, “and are addressing this issue with DoD officials and our elected leaders on Capitol Hill.”
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Meanwhile, VFW does not oppose the new cap. In typical low conflict fashion, VFW is not opposing the cuts but instead encouraging its members to transfer benefits as soon as possible to avoid missing out.
“We are urging service members to transfer benefits now, while they can, and later adjust the number of months each beneficiary will get,” said Fuentes. “Most people aren’t aware that they can adjust benefit amounts after the [new] 16-year mark and [even] after they leave military service.”
Should VFW leadership be embarrassed for the organization’s decision to not oppose the cuts? Is the failure to oppose actually an implicit decision to support?
Sorry, but the GI bill was for VETERANS only, when it was created after WW II. If anyone wants the GI Bill, Join the armed Services to get the benefits.
When I was in, I got the VEAP program. What a joke, but that is what I got. no Bitching or crying about it.
Juan; So they made us have a co-pay when we got Tri-Care in place of fully furnished medical care (i.e. military medicine) At least we had something. It was better than all the interns in the Medical Core. Plus, we couldn’t afford the cost. At some point our dependents were also included. Having had a wife and some ankle-biters for most of my 21 years active duty, I appreciated it. Still better than most of the feather merchants had. My wife and I both worked. I’m now 81, my child bride is 53. Our home is paid for, we have no debts, Put our daughter through college on our hard earned money so she graduated free of college loans just using her own money and scholarships. My wife and I gave up a lot of things including vacations to do this. Shopped thrift stores (my daughter also!) By the way, I came from a poor family and so did my wife. I got involved with Agent Orange in Vietnam and Thailand, and now am 100%. The VA is doing a decent job of keeping me healthy. Doesn’t mean that I back them 100% but I write letters, raise hell, got politically involved and read regs. I figure I have another 10 or so years to raise hell. Should be interesting. The Old Sarge
Next thing to eleminate will be all benefits, apparently they have been doing this for a while, like Tricare where you now have to pay out of pocket where it was guaranteed, it’s all bullshit, when i signed my contract that was the deal, little by little veterans are getting screwed more and more, one puts their life on the line just so DOD and the VA finds ways continue mess things up
Dont know how this fits into this statement but while the VA and the DOD are wanting to cut our education benefits, the new defense spending bill just gave us a 2.6% bump in pay. That means the Active Duty get a 2.6% increase as well as the VA Pensions and the VA Disabled Pay and the Military Retirees. We are suppose to get this sometime this year.
So while they take with the left, they give some back with the right, and we are still behind the proverbial 8 ball
What do either of these two entities have to do with combat veterans? They’re only concern is covering up for va who they work for.
The Republican tax cuts for the extremely wealthy have to be paid for so everyone that isn’t wealthy beyond belief will suffer. Paul Ryan has pledged to go after Social Security and Medicare before he leaves office in December – a life long dream of his. Most of the other social safety nets have already been gutted by this one party Congress and now they’re coming after what’s left. The deficit is spiraling upward out of control without any of the outrage we heard while Obama was President. It won’t be an issue again until the next Democrat takes office or Republicans lose control of Congress and can’t control the agenda like they do now. Only corporate profits and tax cuts for the ultra rich are priorities in Washington right now. Veterans aren’t on that list except the desire to contract out everything possible and transfer that money to the private sector – who return the favor with nice fat campaign contributions.
STOP THIS BULLSHIT Don. We DONT CARE what the fuck your politics are. And since you want to show your ignorance and stupidity, then educate yourself and look up Helvering v Davis US Supreme Court. That little decision from a Democrat packed Supreme Court states that Social Security is nothing more then another form of an INCOME TAX and is to be paid into the US Treasury for use for whatever Congress decides. And care to guess just WHICH party held the purse strings for 99% of the last century? Oh wait it was you liberal loons who were in charge so whatever problems Social Security has its because of you Democrats STEALING the money!
And then look at Flemming v Nestor US Supreme Court 1960. And in yet ANOTHER Democrat packed Court, they ruled that you do NOT have a legal nor moral right to get social security nor any program that comes from same. They can be cut, or stopped for any reason and you dont have a legal leg to stand on to be able to challenge this. But do you still have to pay into Social Security? HELL YES you do.
And as for your bullshit about the deficit, maybe you should pull your head out of your ass as the deficit jumped well over 11 trillion dollars while Obama was in office. Meaning braindead that according to the US Treasury, Obama MORE THEN DOUBLED the national Debt when he was in office. So in words you can understand, he spent far more then every freaking president before him COMBINED. So if all you are going to do is try and spread your liberal bullshit here then just GTFA and do it on the daily kooks or the huff’n’puff site as it is not needed nor wanted here. This is for Veterans issues, not your lefty lies.
Sorry about the rant people, I have no patience with idiots or liars and Don F fits BOTH these catagories.
Not to be too argumentative – well – maybe a little. Yours too is a partisan response that ignores selective realities. Sure – the DEMs pseudo controlled the house for a long time and played fast and loose with the SS funds. And their GOP brethren were right there with them. A houseful of whores is kinda useless without a houseful of dicks.
Obama’s 11 trillion was engineered before he got in the hot seat. Hank Paulson and his NWO bankster motherfuckers set that little game in motion to bail out the banks on our backs. So – try to parse out the gaming of international currencies and our floundering dollar with Quantitative Easing 1, 2, 3 – sure. It happened on Obama’s watch – you know – too big to fail. Then, of course there were the stimulus programs which mostly benefited corporate giants, using tax credits only available to corporations (again and again). And, I’m sure you’ll point to Obamacare, which, resulted in still record profits for Pig Pharma and Pig med, and drove self employed saps like me into the loving arms of the VA.
But – to be fair while remaining totally unbalanced, unhinged, often unlikable, certainly un-electable, and occasionally unsafe at any speed, yes, the DEMs are not heroes either.
Our reality is that we’re all being spooge-waterboarded by a totally corrupt political system that is agnostic about whose mouth it fucks. I cannot bring myself to prefer the flavor of one party’s over the other’s.
Enjoy that little visual with lunch while you guys listen to Limpaw or Madcow.
More divisive, distracting tactics/issues from agencies like the DoD? Target vet issues, cut earned benefits, change benefits. How about cuts for Congress, the Pentagon, cut off foreign aid totally which is in the trillions or black budgets etc? Is this from the think tanks of those immune from prosecution or above all laws or transparency creating more crap to run down hill? To just stir up more crap? Watch the left hand and pay no attention to what the right hand may be doing unnoticed or reported on. Taking time away from the vast amounts of corruption and the VA? Or dealing with major issues like censoring, all their corrupt politicking or retaliation issues.
For years, generations, it seems like the pile of vet issues/distractions just keeps growing with few to none being properly, thoroughly ‘fixed,’ investigated, made widely public, or addressed. Every day, we turn around and it’s always something else for military members and vets to deal with or be concerned about. All things becoming just more corrupt and far beyond ‘fixing.’ Future generations will just look back if aware and proclaim… SNAFU. The corrupt and silent majority wins.
Are we supposed to jump for joy and leap back on the Legion’s bandwagon or maybe start liking them or trusting them again? 100%?! They should be 100% out in the streets to filling local offices/agencies and focusing on those at “top” and bottom for some vital sweeping changes… now. Won’t happen. They all have to play the game.
“Self-serving fucks, Incorporated.” Is correct.
Now, had the DOD decided to somehow limit or restrict the use of gambling and spirits at the various VSO “lodges” around USA, am thinking you would get more of an activist stance in protecting their members.
Had DOD restricted VSO’s ability to collect dues from vulnerable Veterans, even a congress critter would have given a loud ~~H-HAR-R_RUMPH~~ from atop his stairmaster in the congress critter gymnasium.
Had the DOD restricted VSO’s ability to have comfy relationship with the VA while remaining adversarial against their fellow Veterans, another loud gurgle from the gymnasium.
Had the DOD restricted the tax-exempt status of the VSO herds, another primal cry from that gym.
DOD wanting to restrict the VERY BENEFIT MOST VETS JOINED FOR IN FIRST PLACE…EDUCATION, crickets mixed with trepidation, as long as they can still collect dues…go ahead DOD, but please use the Vaseline without the industrial grit sand in it this time?
Self-serving fucks, Incorporated.
Crickets mixed with trepidation. Reduction of benefits through inadvertent action? Ah-Huh
Self serving fucks Inc. yep, got to agree.