(HOST) Veteran A-B-C News correspondent and commentator Bill Seamans is encouraged by recent activity in support of a new G.I. Bill of Rights, but he says that the future of the initiative is still uncertain.
(SEAMANS) The bipartisan campaign spearheaded by Senators Jim Webb, Democrat of Virginia, and Republican Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, to reintroduce the original World War Two G.I. Bill of Rights is gaining more and more support around the country. When I spoke to Webb’s press aide she expressed that optimistic view and added that as of Monday 55 Senators and 182 Representatives had signed on as cosponsors. That’s just a little more than half of our Senate and less than half of our House of Representatives. However optimistic, one cannot help wonder why there is not more of a Congressional response.
The ubiquitous anonymous sources say that Commander in Chief Bush and his Pentagon oppose the World War Two G.I. Bill because they think it would reduce the re-elistment, or re-upping, of experienced combat troops. It’s alleged that many would be lost because they would want get out of the service to take advantage of the Bill’s liberal offer of a free college education or top vocational training plus loan guarantees for housing and small businesses. But then others argue that the Bill would persuade so many more volunteers to sign up that it would solve the Pentagon’s current enlistment problems.
One also wonders why our presidential candidates haven’t talked about it more. Clinton and Obama have signed on as cosponsors of the new G.I. Bill but McCain has not, saying that he has yet to look at it closely enough. Full information on the bill, including the latest updated list of Congressional sponsors, is available on line at Webb.Senate.gov.
A problem seems to be that the expected enthusiasm for the proposed GI Bill of Rights has not ignited on Main Street despite the support of local veterans groups. One reason given is that Main Street is now populated by younger generations not aware of the historic social impact sixty years ago, of the original World War Two G.I. Bill of Rights, unless they had a veteran father or grandfather beneficiary who told them about the help it had given their families. It’s speculated that telephone calls and letters from the people on Main Street to the persons they sent to Congress could expand that list of cosponsors, as they begin to see passage of the Bill as a possible political issue, even though it was launched as a bipartisan effort.
To this observer – it all seems like an apolitical no-brainer argument. The passage of a new World War Two G.I. Bill of Rights would provide desperately needed life repair support for our new veterans – an opportunity as important as the campaign to clean up the veterans’ health care system – but it needs a big boost from Main Street.