Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Sooke]

Who really supports the troops? According to the IAVA (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America [ http://iava.org/index.php ]) its not the ones who say they do.

You can use this handy little thing here to check out your representative in Congress- http://www.iavaaction.org/ -or you can simply scroll down this list.


from http://bobgeiger.blogspot.com/2006/10/vets-group-proves-gop-does-not-support.html

Paul Rieckhoff, Executive Director and founder of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), the country's first and largest Iraq Veterans group, announced on Friday that IAVA has made available a web site giving the results of their analysis of who in Congress truly backs up their words on supporting the troops.

"Sure, politicians say they support the troops. But whose votes back up their rhetoric, and who's just wearing an American flag lapel pin?" asked Rieckhoff in a Huffington Post column last week. "Now there's an easy way to know for sure. The nonprofit, nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America's Action Fund has tallied up every Congressional vote cast on troops' and veterans' issues for the last five years. We've crunched the numbers, and given every legislator a letter grade - the IAVA Congressional Rating."


IAVA assigned an 'A' through 'F' grade using the scale at left showing the percentage of time each Senator has indeed supported troops and Veterans. As someone who has watched Senate Republicans vote time and time again against legislation that would benefit military families, the results did not shock me in the slightest.

No Senator in either party was given an A grade by IAVA. Thirteen Senators received a rating of A- and all of those were Democrats. A total of 23 Senators were given a B+ rating and 22 of those were Democrats as well. The other was Independent James Jeffords of Vermont, who caucuses with the Democrats.
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Hmmmm. Doesn't look like the Republicans are doing very well in this regard. Surely the IAVA must hate America.

[Gopher]

Interesting list, produced just in time for the elections, and just so happens to rank one partisan group above another...and if that were not enough, we have Sooke here to tell us explictly what it means.

This notwithstanding, I think that one of the best things a national leader (any branch) can do "to support the troops" is to be a source of stable, competent, and responsible leadership. While the current administration and many other Republicans fail here (a "D" is too generous), and some Demorcrats like Sam Nunn (now retired) without a doubt get an "A," John McCain does not belong at the bottom of this list or anywhere near it.

Unless you think, Sooke, that clarifying for the armed forces, where their commander-in-chief failed to do so, that torture is unacceptable, warrants such a low grade.

http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=NewsCenter.ViewPressRelease&Content_id=1611

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/15/AR2005121502241.html

And speaking of Republicans, are you disatissfied with this man's performance on the job...?

http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/secdef_histories/bios/cohen.htm

In any case, this is not a simplistic issue. It is not easily explainable via election-year partisan jingoism. You are obscuring a serious issue, an issue that warrants real discussion, with your extremist, leftist bs. Yet another congratulations are in order...

(For the real midterm election thread, please see the one I started last week.)