When England defiantly stood alone, a tiny and fading light against Nazi hegemony in Europe, itneeded U.S. supplies desperately, a minimum of 20 ships docking daily, each carrying 120,000 tons of food and fuel oil. Wolf packs prowled the Mid-Atlantic, outside the reach of long-range aircraft. Despite these dangers, U.S. Merchant Marine convoys fed and fueled Britain. To a man, they were all volunteers. One of every twenty-six merchant mariners was killed in action, a higher percentage than any other branch of service. Their sacrifice was largely forgotten, but not by LV Congressman Charlie Dent. Last August, he honored fifty of these sailors in a ceremony at Northampton Community College.
It would be difficult for anyone to keep a straight face while attacking Dent's record on veterans. But I was surprised to see Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan smirk as he leveled these ridiculous charges, over and over, during Sunday night's debate at Allentown's Jewish Community Center. He even brazenly admitted sending out a mailer that includes a photograph of a soldier with blood streaming down his face.
Holding one of the flyers in his hand, Dent charged, "You're taxing the limbs and prosthetics of people who have served our Country." Under the recently enacted health care overhaul, prosthetic devices will be taxed, even for vets. He called the mailer "shameful," while Callahan defended it, claiming that every assertion "has a fact associated with it."
Dent is one of seven Democratic and five Republican Congressional candidates in Pennsylvania, who've been endorsed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars. According to the nonpartisan Project Vote Smart, Dent has voted on the side of veterans in eight out of nine key pieces of legislation, including a major expansion of the GI Bill. The only measure he opposed was a nonbinding budget resolution that increased spending from $14 trillion to $15.95 trillion.
One Washington insider has considered cutting benefits to wounded warriors, but it's not Dent. President Obama briefly considered a plan that would force veterans to use private insurance to pay for service-related injuries and disabilities.
16 comments:
Spin as you wish....Dent lost the argued point, and the debate hands down....
Of course the budget increased, we are in two wars and have added many more veterans. The cost per individual is the matrix that matters, but Charlie knows this and is trying to play math games. Nice editing on the tape though Bernie to try and show dents points as being more relevant. I was there and saw the real exchange.
This is a fairly accurate representation of what turned out to be the major point of contention. Individual veterans benefits have gone up, not down. They've been exanded more than at any point since WWII. You are obviously not a veteran. Any veteran can tell you his benefits have gone up in the last five years.
It was downright idiotic to focus on this as the chief criticism of Dent because his record here is actually very good.
It is hard for Republicans who sat on their hands throughout the healthcare debate to claim they give a shit about anything. The very public articulation of the Republican strategy of "stonewall", has been in effect for two years.
It may very well prove successful this November but it is hardly leadership. The claim that Charlie supports giving all these benefits yet plays to the tune of the "no taxes" teabag crowd is his undoing. It is hypocritical politics as you well know Bernie. Unfortunately, like in the case of Angle and Stoffa your Dent mancrush blinds you to the obvious.
Did Dent vote to expand the GI Bill or not? Has he supported 8 of 9 critical pieces of legislation or not? Is he supported by the VFW or not? Did Callahan send out a flyer containing a picture of a soldier with blood dripping down his face or not?
The answer to all these questions is Yes. Frankly, I was stunned when Callahan so cavalierly took responsibility for a flyer that actually insults and demeans our soldiers.
Last time, Callahan got his "jobs plan" all bungled up. This time, he focused on an issue where just about every Republican is going to come out on top.
Your boys in DC might think that flyer was cute. Here in the LV, it disgusts people.
I now know what kind of person Callahan really is, and could never support him for anything.
That Callahan mailer is an insult to all veterans. Using a bloody soldier as a political prop is one of the lowest things I have ever seen. He should be held accountable for this piece and asked to apologize to all veterans who received it.
No the lowest thing is not fully supporting our vets and pretending you have.....The votes don't lie....
"No the lowest thing is not fully supporting our vets and pretending you have"
Why then has every reputtable veterans organization supported Dent over Callahan? Fact is, only a desperate candidate would use a bloody soldier to get votes. That speaks to Callahan's character.
@10:18 - Name one thing Mayor Callahan has done for Veterans? Charlie has always been a strong supporter of us. Mayor Callahan is misconstruing Charlie's record and you are obviously affiliated with this somehow.
"No the lowest thing is not fully supporting our vets and pretending you have.....The votes don't lie...."
No, they don't, and according to the nonpartisan Smart Voter Project, Dent has voted with veterans on 8 out of 9 key issues. The biggest of these is the expansion of the GI Bill, which Dent supported.
"Using a bloody soldier as a political prop is one of the lowest things I have ever seen."
Not only did he use it, but freely admtted doing it last night. I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt bc it did not come directly from his campaign, but he's apparently proud of it.
Now that I know how he plays, I'll have a very difficult time ever supporting him for anything.
I don't believe this tactic has ever been used by a candidate in a Congressional race. It's a new low.
Charlie DEnt visits the troops, veterans, and helps the families.
As a military Mom and someone who has attended many military funerals and "awarded" Gold Stars, I think that Callahans ad was disgusting and dispicable.
You are right, it doesn't get lower than that, the actions prove
Callahans absolute lack of respect for those who would lay down their lives for his freedom to insult them.
Shame on ou John CAllhan!
We need Geeting to step in here and set all this straight
Callahan campaign won't sleep tonight, we lost the Bernie vote....oh wait, we lost that years ago...carry on...
Charlie supports Bush tax cuts for millionaires and is willing to play "chicken" with Obama to preserve them rather than just agree that the tax cut extension should not include the millionaires. That tell you everything you need to know why Dent must be given the boot and Callahan put into his seat.
This is a ridiculous argument. Pelosi has a majority and could easily hae rammed thru an extension that would address the concerns raised by Dent, or should could have just said the hell with it. She opted for the latter, and the House voted for a recess with Congressman Dent opposed.
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