Lawmakers condemn Pentagon push to make California veterans pay back enlistment bonuses

[TexasTowelie]

Lawmakers on Sunday condemned a Pentagon effort to recoup enlistment bonuses improperly paid to thousands of California National Guard soldiers a decade ago, saying the overpayments were not the soldiers’ fault and calling on the Pentagon or Congress to waive their debts.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy pledged a House investigation of the problem, calling the Pentagon demands for repayment of bonuses from combat veterans “disgraceful."

McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) said the House would demand a briefing from the National Guard Bureau, the Pentagon agency that oversees the California branch of the Guard.

The Times reported that the Pentagon was demanding repayment of enlistment bonuses — which often reached $15,000 or more — from about 9,700 California Guard soldiers, many of whom served multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-calif-guard-bonus-20161023-snap-story.html

[HassleCat]

1. I know this tune, words and melody.

When I enlisted in the Navy, they lured me into a special 6 year program with a promise of a $5k bonus for the additional two years. Then they said, "No, we were just having a little fun with you. Hahahaha!" Well, they did this to a whole bunch of people, so we put together a class action lawsuit, and it went all the way to the US Supreme Court, where we eventually prevailed. I was out of the military almost a year, and figured I would never see anything. A check arrived in the amount of $4986, with no explanation as to what it was for.