Backing the GI Bill for the 21st Century (Rep. Steve Cohen)
May 1st, 2008
Tuesday night, I held a Telephone Town Hall, and my constituents expressed indignation about the current status of the GI Bill. It is almost unthinkable that we don’t give the same benefits to our fighting men and women returning from war that we did after World War II – more than 60 years ago. And yesterday, we saw more than 100 veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan marching outside the Capitol in support of a new GI Bill which would restore educational benefits to their proper levels. The American people are making it clear that they want Congress to take action on this issue. Not only is it popular among nearly all spectra of the public, but it is the moral thing to do.
This is why I have been vocal in my support for and cosponsored H.R. 5740, the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008: truly, a GI Bill for the 21st Century. This bipartisan legislation would offer the 1.7 million men and women who have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan educational benefits on par with those provided to veterans of the World War II era. This bill would honor the service of our brave fighting men and women by restoring the promise of the original GI Bill to pay for a full, four-year college education.
Passing H.R. 5740 will not only strengthen our military by expanding our recruitment pool, it will also make the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan part of a new American economic recovery – just like after World War II. Restoring the benefits of the GI Bill to the level that World War II vets enjoyed is a win-win because we’ll produce a better educated work force and we’ll honor our obligation to our brave service men and women. We’ve asked our soldiers to give 100% and we should do the same
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