Kerry Urges Congress to Ease Burden of Lengthy Deployment on Nat. Guard

[kerrygoddess]

Kerry Urges Congress to Ease Burden of Lengthy Deployment on National Guard and Reserves
September 19th, 2005

Before delivering his “blistering” speech today at Brown University, John Kerry held a field hearing at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass., on the impact of deployments on National Guard and Reservists who own or work for small businesses. This issue is one that Kerry has been very vocal about for some time. I have posted other pieces on this here, here and here.

A key issue discussed at the hearing was Kerry’s Military Family Bill of Rights, a bill that includes comprehensive and direct assistance for military members and their families, including loans, grants and tax credits for Guard and Reserve members who own their own small businesses or work for one.

“The repeated and lengthy call-ups of our Guard and Reserve troops are putting a tremendous financial strain on military families in Massachusetts, the Gulf region and across the country. Too often, our troops have to surrender part of their income to serve, and too often, small businesses struggle to absorb the loss of an employee. They should be able to rest assured that when they return from Iraq and Afghanistan, their homes and their jobs will be waiting for them,” Kerry said. “Congress can choose to talk about helping military families or it can actually do something to help them. I’m trying to get Congress to put its money where its mouth is. For a lot of these guys, it’s just been too much hollow rhetoric.”

MORE - http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=604

[karynnj]

1. I don't know how he does it.

Does he ever sleep?

[whometense]

2. ACK!!!!!

This is 10 minutes from my house.

[globalvillage]

3. I'm guessing no.

He wears me out just reading about him. If the media actually covered him, they'd have to add another channel.

Heyyyy!!! Wouldn't that be awesome? KNN. All Kerry, all the time.


:P

[TayTay]

5. It's that cloning porject, remember!

Sigh! How else do you account for all that energy all of a sudden.

[whometense]

4. More

BC website:

Reservists' sacrifices: A hearing on campus, led by U.S. Senator John F. Kerry, detailed the negative impact of long-term deployments on the National Guard and reservists who own or work for small businesses.

Boston Globe

A reserve officer details the sacrifices of giving up his civilian life

By Adrienne P. Samuels, Globe Staff | September 20, 2005

Lieutenant Colonel Sam Poulten went from producing $7 million in sales, with commissions, as a partner in a real estate business to making $60,000 a year as a medical Army reservist in Iraq.

It was February 2003, and Poulten knew the dedication demanded of reservists.

But the three-day notice for a 13-month absence from his Chelmsford home, combined with a $30,000 loss in annual income, nearly ruined him. While Poulten was overseas, his wife resorted to using credit cards for basic goods. Since he returned in March of 2004, Poulten's Lowell office hasn't made up for the money lost in his absence.

Poulten told his story yesterday at a hearing at Boston College, led by Senator John F. Kerry, on the negative impact of long-term deployments on the National Guard and reservists who own or work for small businesses.

Kerry, who sits on the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, plans to submit the testimony to the committee's official records in hopes of gaining support for a relief bill for reservists and their employers.

Kerry is challenging the Bush administration to do better by its soldiers.

At the hearing, Kerry heard ideas from military personnel about what would make life financially easier for reservists, including a simplified loan process.

The administration ''has abused these soldiers," Kerry said. ''They didn't sign up for interminable employment . . . Effectively, they have been made active duty."

Poulten said such cases as the cost his company endured in his absence may affect the numbers of people who sign up to serve in the reserves or in the National Guard.

''Why should folks such as I need to worry about that income gap when we come home?" said Poulten. ''None of us want to have to choose between serving our country or continuing our civilian careers . . . all we want to do is break even. It's about supporting our families."

Adrienne P. Samuels can be reached at [e-mail]

[kerrygoddess]

6. Thanks Whome! N/T