Press Release: How Utah Senators Hatch and Bennett don't support our troops

Outrage Today, Despite Last Year's Votes Against Our Troops

From Utah Democratic Chair, Wayne Holland Jr.

DATELINE - This week, as details about the deplorable conditions at hospitals responsible for helping our wounded soldiers continue to emerge, many Republicans joined the chorus of outrage demanding to know how our government could have so severely failed them. But behind all the rhetoric is the harsh reality that, when Senators Hatch and Bennett had a chance last year to provide funding for these facilities they chose to put party loyalty ahead of our brave men and women in uniform.

During the 109th Congress, Senators Hatch and Bennett voted FIVE times to block Democratic efforts to provide more resources to veterans and military health care. They voted against an additional $2.8 billion for veterans' medical care in FY2006, against pegging funding increases for the Veterans Administration to inflation and the demand for care, against establishing a $1 billion trust fund for improving health facilities, against closing corporate tax loopholes to fund an additional $1.5 billion for veterans' medical services in FY2007, and against a Democratic amendment that would have provided a mandatory five year funding stream of $104 billion for veterans' health care.

"The failure to ensure that our wounded soldiers receive the level of medical care they need and deserve is not just a national disgrace, it's a shameful indictment of the way the Republican agenda consistently put politics ahead of the public interest," said Utah State Democratic Party Chair Wayne Holland. "Because Republicans like Senators Hatch and Bennett refused to demand accountability from the Bush Administration, our troops are policing a civil war in Iraq without the resources they need, while our wounded soldiers are recovering from their injuries without the treatment they were promised.”

"At a time when Republican members of Congress were picking up the phone to put political pressure on U.S. Attorneys, it is an outrageous insult to our troops and veterans for Republicans to suggest they could not have done more to help our wounded heroes. Not only could they have voted for Democratic efforts to fully fund veterans and military health care, many of them could have picked up the phone to pressure the Bush Administration to fix the deplorable conditions brought to their attention. The time has come for Senators Hatch and Bennett to put partisanship aside and join Democrats in standing up for our men and women in uniform."

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Rejected Funding Measures for Veterans' Healthcare, 109th Congress

S.Amdt. 149 to S.Con.Res. 18, failed
• To increase veterans medical care by $2.8 billion in 2006.
• Democrats against: none
• Republicans for: Chafee, Coleman
• Republicans against: Alexander, Allard, Allen, Bennett, Bond, Brownback, Bunning, Burns, Burr, Chambliss, Coburn, Cochran, Collins, Cornyn, Craig, Crapo, DeMint, DeWine, Dole, Domenici, Ensign, Enzi, Frist, Graham, Grassley, Gregg, Hagel, Hatch, Hutchison, Inhofe, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, McConnell, Murkowski, Roberts, Santorum, Sessions, Shelby, Smith, Snowe, Specter, Stevens, Sununu, Talent, Thomas, Thune, Vitter, Voinovich, Warner
• Not Voting: none

S.Amdt. 1937 to H.R. 2863, failed
• Ensures guaranteed funding for Veterans' health care from both discretionary and mandatory funding sources; provides an annual discretionary amount that is locked in for future years at the FY 2005 funding level; and states that the Department of Veterans Affairs shall receive mandatory funding that is adjusted year-to-year based on changes in demand from the VA health care system and the rate of health care inflation.
• Democrats against: Inouye
• Republicans for: Chafee, Collins, Snowe, Specter, Thune
• Republicans against: Alexander, Allard, Allen, Bennett, Bond, Brownback, Bunning, Burns, Burr, Chambliss, Coburn, Cochran, Coleman, Cornyn, Craig, Crapo, DeMint, DeWine, Dole, Domenici, Ensign, Enzi, Frist, Graham, Grassley, Gregg, Hagel, Hatch, Hutchison, Inhofe, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, McConnell, Murkowski, Roberts, Santorum, Sessions, Shelby, Smith, Stevens, Sununu, Talent, Thomas, Vitter, Voinovich, Warner
• Not Voting: Corzine

S.Amdt. 2735 to S.Amdt. 2707 to H.R. 4297, failed
• Establishes $1 billion trust fund to provide improvements to health facilities that treat military personnel and veterans; sunsets dividends and capital gains tax breaks on December 31, 2006, for those with incomes greater than $1 million included in House bill; and applies some of the revenue to deficit reduction.
• Democrats against: Nelson (NE)
• Republicans for: Chafee
• Republicans against: Alexander, Allard, Allen, Bennett, Bond, Brownback, Bunning, Burns, Burr, Chambliss, Coburn, Cochran, Coleman, Collins, Cornyn, Craig, Crapo, DeMint, DeWine, Dole, Ensign, Enzi, Frist, Graham, Grassley, Gregg, Hagel, Hatch, Hutchison, Inhofe, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, McConnell, Murkowski, Roberts, Santorum, Sessions, Shelby, Smith, Snowe, Specter, Stevens, Sununu, Talent, Thune, Vitter, Voinovich, Warner
• Not Voting: Bingaman, Domenici, Thomas

S.Amdt. 3007 to S.Con.Res. 83, failed
• To increase Veterans medical services funding by $1.5 billion in FY 2007 to be paid for by closing corporate tax loopholes.
• Democrats against: none
• Republicans for: Chafee
• Republicans against: Alexander, Allard, Allen, Bennett, Bond, Brownback, Bunning, Burns, Burr, Chambliss, Coburn, Cochran, Coleman, Collins, Cornyn, Craig, Crapo, DeMint, DeWine, Dole, Domenici, Ensign, Enzi, Frist, Graham, Grassley, Gregg, Hagel, Hatch, Hutchison, Inhofe, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, McConnell, Murkowski, Roberts, Santorum, Sessions, Shelby, Smith, Snowe, Specter, Stevens, Sununu, Talent, Thomas, Thune, Vitter, Voinovich, Warner
• Not Voting: none

S.Amdt. 3141 to S.Con.Res. 83, failed
• To provide a mandatory stream of funding of $6.9 billion in FY 2007 and $104 billion over five years for veterans' health care; and offsets by restoring the pre-2001 top rate for incomes over $1 million and closing various corporate tax loopholes.
• Democrats against: Nelson (NE)
• Republicans for: Snowe, Specter
• Republicans against: Alexander, Allard, Allen, Bennett, Bond, Brownback, Bunning, Burns, Burr, Chafee, Chambliss, Coburn, Cochran, Coleman, Collins, Cornyn, Craig, Crapo, DeMint, DeWine, Dole, Domenici, Ensign, Enzi, Frist, Graham, Grassley, Gregg, Hagel, Hatch, Hutchison, Inhofe, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, McConnell, Murkowski, Roberts, Santorum, Sessions, Shelby, Smith, Stevens, Sununu, Talent, Thomas, Thune, Vitter, Voinovich, Warner
• Not Voting: none

Wayne Holland
Utah State Democratic Party Chair
(801)328-1212 ext. 201
(801)916-1879