US military members lose tuition assistance because of cuts, but Israel will still get taxpayer cash

[Cali_Democrat]

Sequester halts new military tuition assistance

In response to a call for cuts due to federal sequestration, the Department of Defense has suspended its federal Tuition Assistance program for all military members, the Oregon National Guard, which is affected, announced Tuesday.

The Secretary of the Army approved the suspension of Tuition Assistance (TA) on March 8, and the Secretary of the Air Force has approved the suspension on March 11.

<...>

"This suspension is necessary, given the significant budget execution challenges caused by the combined effects of a possible year-long continuing resolution and sequestration," the announcement said.

http://www.ktvz.com/news/Sequester-halts-new-military-tuition-assistance/-/413192/19380776/-/nt48oaz/-/index.html

Yet Israel will still get US taxpayer cash:

Obama: US to open talks on extending Israel military aid'

President Barack Obama said on Wednesday that Israel and the United States were opening talks on extending US military aid beyond 2017, on his first visit to the Jewish state since taking office.

Speaking beside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Obama also made clear that despite a budget crunch in Washington there would be no interruption to funding of Israel's vaunted Iron Dome anti-missile system.

"As part of our long-term commitment to Israel's security, the prime minister and I agreed to begin discussions on extending military assistance to Israel," Obama said.

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130320/obama-us-open-talks-extending-israel-military-aid

Looks like American taxpayer dollars will go to a foreign country at the expense of the poor and American military service members.

[TwilightGardener]

1. Not worth getting mad over--as soon as the sequester is ended, they'll get

tuition assistance back. Actually, there's an amendment to the budget to restore TA, specifically, even with the sequester in place.

[enlightenment]

3. Try telling that to a vet currently in school.

No problem if they can't afford to enroll next semester - maybe can't graduate. Not worth getting mad over.

I would hope that they will restore this assistance before it becomes an issue for these vets, but this is Washington we're talking about - which means no guarantee. As such, your comment is rather callous, don't you think?

[bike man]

4. edited Unless I misread one or more articles on this, the cut to tuition aid does not

affect vets using the GI bill, but rather active duty troops who get the aid for studies while on active duty.

edited to add this http://www.news-record.com/news/936763-91/us-house-to-vote-on

College tuition assistance for active-duty military members, cut as part of the federal sequester, might be restored.

An amendment that restores funding to the program used by an 300,000 service members cleared the U.S. Senate today on a voice vote.

The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote Thursday on the continuing budget resolution that includes the amendment, which was proposed by Sen. Kay Hagan, a Greensboro Democrat, and Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla. <more at link>

there are more, newer links on the google page found using "tuition aid cut active duty" The one I listed is about 3 or 4 hours old.

[TwilightGardener]

5. Tuition assistance is a nice benefit, but it's not the GI Bill, which is the biggie.

GI Bill hasn't been affected--my son goes to college on it. The services were given some leeway on what to cut--the Navy chose not to cut TA yet, but the Army and Air Force decided to. It sucks, but that's the way Congress wants it--painful. The non-essential niceties go first.

[enlightenment]

6. I live in a city with a large military base.

I teach. Every semester I have not one or two - but many students who are active duty military. I have online students taking classes from Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait.

I am also a military veteran and understand the difference between the GI bill and tuition assistance. I don't understand your dismissal of what does affect many, beyond the apparent fact that what doesn't affect you or yours has no meaning to you.

Whatever floats your boat.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

7. "that's the way Congress wants it"? The DOD has no say and does not prioritize?

Isn't that like saying on other issues "It's all the Republicans' fault"?

Harry Truman would have said "The buck stops here" and taken action. Nowadays, it's always someone else's fault.

[TwilightGardener]

8. The services were given the leeway to work some of the cuts--

the navy didn't cut its TA. DoD-wide, commissaries are closed an extra day a week, some teaching staff will be let go in DoD schools, there will be civilian furloughs...my concern personally is that they don't cut Tricare payments for retirees or on-base child care centers, those would put even more of a hardship on families. My guess is that the DoD has to go after short-term spending items that can be quickly restored once the sequester ends, and won't mess with longer-term readiness, training, development of programs, or missions.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

9. I think that your reply undercuts the claim "that's the way Congress wants it".

[TwilightGardener]

10. You understand that the whole point of the sequester was to take a huge chunk

out of the military's budget..as a deterrent, to make sure a deal was made? This is how it shakes out in reality. People don't like it--but since the purpose of the military is defense and not things like tuition assistance and commissary shopping, that sort of thing is easiest to whack first, but also easiest to restore.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

13. You're interested in what I understand? Really? What I understand is that the discussion focused

upon tuition cuts and nothing that has been posted supports the assertion that cuts in tuition assistance is "that's the way Congress wants it".

There is nothing to indicate that Congress even considered it.

[earthside]

2. Ha!

I wonder if we will hear and see the squawking of the Teabaggers about aid to Israel in the face of sequestration the same way they clucked about aid to Egypt?

[Lionessa]

11. Yep, nothing gets between the Israeli aid clusterfuck, that ultimately seems to return to the US

as bribes, oops I mean contributions, to our own Legislators, Executives, and Judges.

[freshwest]

12. Any particular reason you connect these two? Neither article refers to the other program.

There is no cause and effect here. Head Start is going to be cut, maybe indefinitely. And it provides two meals a day and help to the most needy children. We'll continue pay to protect South Korea, and many other things. There are boondoggles that will be funded instead of tuition, but I see no connection in these two stories so I don't understand what you're getting at here. Peace Out.