Tag Archives: military

Current Events, Recent Posts

Sweet Home Alabama

12 Comments

FINALLY, a senator with something between his legs that many of his so-called GOP  counterparts lack and have always lacked, including McCarthy. That fellow ceases to amaze me how he can classify himself as a Republican. This is exactly how congress can get everyone’s attention.  Tommy doesn’t care about votes like all the rest of them do, he’s doing what’s right. Never heard of him before, but I know of him now!

From the Wall Street Journal                                                                      Alabama Senator’s Military Roadblock Draws Criticism

BY NANCY A. Y OUSSEF AND LINDSAY WISE WASHINGTON—Many of Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s colleagues say he is making bad calls.

The Alabama Republican lawmaker has thrown a roadblock in front of promotions for all senior military officers, drawing criticism from the White House as well as Republican and Democratic lawmakers. He also came under fire over his comments about white supremacists in the military, a controversy he tried to tamp down this week.

Tuberville, a former college football coach who guided Auburn University to a South-eastern Conference title, won election to the Senate representing his deep-red state in 2020. He was backed by then-President Donald Trump in the Republican primary over Trump’s onetime attorney general Jeff Sessions. In the general election, Tuberville defeated Democratic incumbent Sen. Doug Jones and he has had a conservative voting record since taking office.

The 68-year-old thrust himself into the spotlight earlier this year when he announced he would block the promotions for top military generals and admirals until the Pentagon agrees to end its policy allowing troops leave and travel funds for reproductive healthcare, including abortion. He has said he won’t lift his hold on the promotions until the military changes its policy or Congress passes a measure codifying the policy.

Tuberville said he doesn’t believe the holds are affecting military readiness. He said this week that there had been no progress toward lifting them. “Zero conversations. Same as usual.”

While senators sometimes put holds on Pentagon political appointees who have policy- making responsibilities, the Tuberville move breaks with Senate tradition as it applies to career military officers. The standoff has created hundreds of vacancies at the top of the military, including the commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps.

“It’s totally inappropriate. It’s outrageous,” President Biden said last month. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) has also criticized the effort. “I don’t support putting a hold on military nominations,” he said in May.

Tuberville has also struggled to quell another controversy related to the Pentagon’s effort to root out extremism in its ranks.

In a radio interview in May, when asked if he believed that white nationalists should be allowed to serve in the military, Tuberville responded: “Well, they call them that. I call them Americans.”

He criticized Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for “saying we’re going to run out white nationalists, people that don’t believe how we believe.”

In 2021, Austin ordered a daylong stand-down for forces to discuss combating extremism within the ranks following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. A working group then recommended changes to Pentagon policy on how the department defined extremist activities and how the force should address an individual suspected of participating in such activities. A review found roughly 100 cases of troops engaged in extremist activities.

Tuberville, who has said conservatives are often unfairly called racists, defended his comments on white nationalism, including to CNN on Monday. He condemned racism but declined to say white nationalism was by definition racist. “That’s your opinion,” he told the CNN host.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) urged Tuberville to apologize.

McConnell, asked about Tuberville’s comments, said, “White supremacy is simply unacceptable in the military and in our whole country.”

Some colleagues said Tuberville had been unfairly maligned.

“I don’t sense from Tommy that he’s a bigot in any way, a racist,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R., N.D.). “I mean, my gosh, the guy’s a college football coach…he’s certainly been around a multicultural world view.”

After a closed-door Senate GOP lunch Tuesday afternoon, Tuberville altered his stance. “White nationalists are racists,” he told reporters.

The same day, Tuberville’s hold on military nominees came under scrutiny on Capitol Hill as Biden’s nominee for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, sat for his confirmation hearing.

Brown told the Senate Armed Services Committee the hold could affect both retention and recruiting, adding that it was forcing some generals to put off retirement and leading junior officers to reconsider their military careers. —Dustin Volz and Simon J. Levien contributed to this article.

Tuberville also came under fire over comments about white supremacists.

 

It sickens me how the so-called GOP senators can possibly condemn and criticize him for doing what needs to be done. You want to get the military’s attention this is exactly how to do it. Keep it up Tommy my man, go get em’! Wish my Florida senators had your set.

Originally posted 2023-07-13 15:27:48.

Current Events

Toxicity

6 Comments

A VERY WELL written article from US & World by someone who must have been a Marine. I looked him up and here is who he is: Prioleau Alexander, who is a native of Charleston, South Carolina, and a graduate of Auburn University, is a former Marine officer and a self-employed advertising entrepreneur. And trust me he pulls no punches. Enjoy. And oh BTW, I personally agree with everything he says. What say you?

US & WORLD

Fitness News – Independen. Unapologetic

Here he is with my favorite 2024 Presidential candidate

Prioleau Alexander: The Marine Ethos

Current administration making changes that go against the Corps’ congressionally mandated responsibilities …

by E Prioleau Alexander May 3, 2023 

I don’t know much about the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Coast Guard, but I do know a bit about the Marines … and I can tell you that since 1775, there is a singular mission that gets a United States Marine out of the bed before sunrise: Killing those who wish harm to the United States.

That’s it.

To understand a Marine, you must know they have one thing they fear far more than death: Failure to perform in a way worthy of those who worn the uniform before them – a reputation built on blood, pain, and death.

The Corps, you see, is not a branch of the military – it is a cult.

This is because Boot Camp and Officer Candidate School tear men down to the edge of their souls, then rebuild them as men who believe they could go head-to-head with Hell’s most powerful demons. These young men and women leave that training with the belief that there is no greater or harder-to-earn honor than wearing the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor insignia. With that goes their belief that “every Marine is a rifleman.”

Are there not men such as these in the other branches? Absolutely, but each branch has its own mission – and serving as America’s “force in readiness” rests with the Marines. It is their job to be the first to fight – taking charge of hostile situations by deploying extreme violence. In the Korean War, North Korea overran the south until there was but a tiny patch of land left unoccupied. The Marines landed, and in short order the retreat of the enemy began.

Who are the Americans who sign on to be a part of this? As liberals would say, “toxic males” join the cult because they are old-fashioned patriots – and want to be a part of America’s most elite fighting team. Tough and driven women who also want to be a part of something elite often join, even if it means certain jobs and promotions won’t be available to them.

Life is much easier for a woman in the other services, but female Marines aren’t looking for “easy.”

What binds these men and women? Their ethos. The belief that they are different from Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen. That they can do the impossible, despite a lack of funding and using the Army’s hand-me-down gear. That they can accomplish the difficult in short order – and the impossible with a little extra time.

The importance of Marines believing themselves to be a breed apart cannot be overstated. Writing about the current failures of Marine Corps leadership, Marine Medal of Honor recipients Maj. General Jim Livingston and Colonel Jay Vargas state, “The structure of the Corps or the weapons they are provided can be changed or reversed. Ethos is different—and once extinguished, it is gone forever.”

Marines have always been told they are America’s shock troops. They are the force the President uses when it’s time to call 911. Take that away, and you might as well offer them a beret and roll them into the Army.

For Marines, “the good order and disciple” of a combat unit is paramount, and that good order and disciple is based one primary belief: We are all the same. Yes, we are different colors of green, but we are all green. We are Marines, nothing will divide us, and no one will be singled out for any kind of special treatment.

The first open strike of the Marines’ ethos came with the reversal of “Don’t ask don’t tell,” a policy that worked well for the Marines. Openly gay individuals began serving in the Corps despite the fact the Corps is mostly comprised of “toxic males” who object.

Then came women in combat arms, and many “toxic” males in the business of gunfighting don’t want to be burdened by a female who may slow them down, or receive undue attention from instinctually-concerned males if wounded in combat. (For men, hearing a man scream in pain is very different than hearing a woman scream in pain).

U.S. Marines (USMC)

Finally, we come to admittance of openly trans individuals, with the military paying for their gender mutilation surgery. This needs no further analysis.

Is honoring the particular friction a person likes during sex worth disrupting the ethos of America’s one military unit capable of serving in every clime and place? Liberals would say, “If they don’t like it, they can get out.” They are. Liberals also say, “If they don’t like the new system, don’t join.” They aren’t.

If you haven’t served in the Corps, Marines don’t care about your opinion on “toxic” men… because they know first-hand these men are the best at stacking up enemy dead like cord wood. These “toxic “males speak of themselves only as Marines, without the need for adjectives pointing out their differences.

The current mumbling point for those in favor of this lunacy is that “the Corps is stronger with diversity.” No statement could be further from the truth: The Corps has been feared by enemies of America for centuries because there’s no diversity. Everyone is green, and committed solely to the accomplishment of the mission.

Is that offensive? Too bad … the truth can hurt.

In addition to the sexual revolution in an organization that lives and dies by unit cohesion, Marines find themselves with a new Commandant — General David Berger — who seems to have lost his mind … to the point of making changes that go against the Corps’ Congressionally mandated responsibilities.

No two words sum up this evolution better than the Commandant’s retention efforts being touted as “Talent Management.” First, these warriors aren’t “talent” — they are Marines. Second, Marines don’t “manage” anything – they lead. I confess I laughed out loud at the Commandant’s cluelessness when I read the words “talent management.”

U.S. Marines (USMC)

General Livingston and Colonel Vargas sum up the current Commandant’s other changes quite succinctly, pointing to the erosion of the Corps’ ethos: “The decision has been made to eliminate all armor, and scout sniper platoons in infantry battalions. The Corps is moving forward with drastic cuts in the infantry, cannon artillery, assault amphibious vehicles, aviation, military police, assault beaching and combat service support. They have crippled the Marine Corps capabilities to respond to global crises and contingencies across the spectrum of conflict. And they are investing in experimental weapons that simply replicate war-fighting skills offered by other services.”

It is madness to make cuts to anything having to do with the man-to-man warfighting skills and equipment needed to destroy the enemy, because man-to-man warfighting is the Corps. Tanks, assault amphibian vehicles, combat engineers, artillery, and the air wing exist solely to assist infantry grunts in planting the American flag on enemy soil. The rest of the Corps exists solely to support those combat arms units. The Army, Navy, and Air Force can handle the other warfighting needs — and they are quite good at it.

If you were to meet General Livingston or Colonel Vargas in person, even if they were attired in their Dress Blues and wearing their Medal of Honor decorations, it would be perfectly acceptable for you to forgo the formalities of their rank, and greet them by saying, “Hello there, Marine.”

That is part of the uniqueness of the Corps—that rank and awards take a distant second to the honor of being called a Marine.

If the Corps isn’t going to react on a moment’s notice to rain hell on an enemy that pops up in some remote area of the globe, who will?

I hope Congress and the Corps’ current leadership will get together for a discussion centering on the question, “Why are we trying to strangle the life out of the very things that make Marines who and what they are?” There are hundreds of thousands of former Marines out here who’d love to know the answer, and they’ll be joined by a few million civilians when they no longer hear the words, “The Marines have landed, and the situation is now under control.”

I never met Colonel Vargas, but I know MajGen Livingston very well. He was my 6th Marines regimental commander when I was blessed to have had command of 2/6, Huxley’s Harlots. There is no better warrior in my book. A Marines’ Marine through and through.

Originally posted 2023-06-21 18:41:14.

Current Events

Parenting

8 Comments

I have been wanting to post something about this issue for years, but found others to talk about. However, the time has come that I MUST do it NOW! Thanks to my good friend and Marine brother, a retired Sergeant Major of Marines, who sent this to me this morning.  I enjoyed it and agreed with it so much that I had to read it twice. This guy has nailed it squarely on the head. 

COMMENTARY- The Blade, Toledo, OH

Parents, not guns, are responsible for keeping kids safe

 

BY MATT MARKEY BLADE OUTDOORS EDITOR

There were 361,119 hunters in Ohio in the most recent season. Michigan had 665,431 hunters. They carried shotguns, rifles, pistols, and lethal archery equipment, so they were armed to the hilt. But no one shot anyone else.

That’s more than one million individuals with firearms, but they didn’t settle a neighborhood squabble, a fight over a girlfriend, a dispute involving territory, a road rage incident, a case of perceived disrespect, or an instance of just looking at someone the wrong way, with violence.

They did not allow their guns, which most own for hunting and personal protection, to become weapons used to settle some petty discord, the result of which we see on the streets of our major cities on a frighteningly regular basis.

In that scenario, which seems to be playing out on an endless loop, lives end — too often those of innocent bystanders — families are devastated, mothers are left to mourn, the perpetrators end up in the prison system, and we pay to support them for decades.

And many of our politicians, community leaders, and sociologists hit the well-worn but ever-reliable default button of blame — Gun Violence. They are infatuated with that term. Make the lifeless device culpable. Focus your condemnation on a piece of steel. Claim that the inanimate object is the actual source of the evil.

There were more than 3,000 youths at the 2022 high school Target Shooting National Championship competition. Every one of them had a powerful shotgun, but nobody shot anyone. There will be more than 4,000 people taking part in the National Matches at Camp Perry this summer, firing rifles and pistols, but as has been the case for more than 100 years, nobody will shoot anyone, despite the abundance of firepower and ammunition on site.

Then we hear about a six-year-old in Virginia taking a handgun to school and shooting his teacher. The national news calls it Gun Violence, but nobody demands to know where he got the gun, where did he learn to use it, and where are his parents.

Two teens arrested after a recent brawl at a Columbus mall were found to be carrying fully-loaded handguns. In a Cleveland suburb, two boys, ages 12 and 13, were charged with aggravated murder for shooting down a 14-year-old schoolmate. The cases keep rolling in, and we lump them all into that convenient Gun Violence folder.

Much closer to home, the examples are equally abundant.

A 16-year-old is arrested for shooting and killing another teen near the playground area at Ravine Park Village apartment complex in East Toledo. A convenience store on Phillips Avenue is robbed by two gun-toting teens, and one of them dies in a shootout with police.

In January, a 15-year-old girl is found shot to death in a North Toledo alley. Three teens decide to shoot up a funeral in Toledo and two funeral home employees are wounded. A 15-year-old boy is killed and a 10-year-old seriously wounded during a Wednesday night shooting at Avondale and Brown avenues.

Other teens are injured in shootings at two in the morning where the gunslinger is also a juvenile. We have a news conference, bringing out the long faces and the somber tone, but nobody in authority asks mom and dad what their children are doing out at that hour. Nobody asks where they got the guns.

Instead, we make Gun Violence the boogeyman. We describe it as if it is the next coronavirus variant or an invasive species that just arrived from a foreign land. No one dares demand some personal responsibility from the parents of the youths involved in these shootings and other crimes.

We hear about these “violence interrupters” who are going to ride into town, work the streets, and put an end to kids killing other kids. That approach turned out to be a band aid that didn’t stick when applied over a metastasized gargantuan tumor, and a colossal waste of time, and money.

Still searching for a magic potion, we find a program from Kentucky. This is going to fix our Gun Violence problem. More programs, more government money, more meetings. But nobody wants to talk about parenting or your responsibility for the children you bring into this world.

When a juvenile believes that picking up a gun, pointing it at another human being, and pulling the trigger is the way to solve their problems or take what they want, we’ll have to go a lot further than Kentucky or Chicago — maybe to Heaven above — to find the solution. Because nobody wants to dare mention the source of the issue.

Kids learn a lot at home — both good and bad — and if home shirks this responsibility, then there are plenty of nefarious outside sources ready to fill the gap. And when kids see that irresponsible behavior is acceptable, as well as a lack of concern and culpability for their actions, they often take these same traits into a troubled adult life.

Like many kids, I found that my father was a very effective violence interrupter. You treated your neighbors, teachers, women, law enforcement, and your friends with respect because, from the earliest age, that is the way you saw your role model treating other people. And you did not want to transgress and end up in Dad’s court.

While searching for an appropriate and acceptable description for the kind of leadership we need at this critical juncture, when kids killing other kids has become so common, this came up — a comment from a Toledo police officer following yet another slaying involving our children.

“We need parents involved in kids’ lives. We need structure. We need routine. We need discipline. We need rules and boundaries,” this female officer said.

That should have been the mic drop moment that ended this circus of news conferences and proclamations and addressing this issue with wads of money and more bureaucratic folderol.

She nailed it, but I don’t think that perspective has been raised by anyone in authority ever since.

Contact Blade outdoors editor Matt Markey at: mmarkey@theblade.com or 419-724-6068.

My question has always been who is responsible when when a 10 or 12-year-old takes a gun from home to school and kills someone? No one wants to place the blame where it should be. instead we feel sorry for the parents, Oh my it’s so sad that my 10 year-old Johnny shot and killed his best friend over an argument. R U shitting me? Furthermore, the parents cannot believe that their son did something so horrific. It’s those damn slack guns laws. Really?

I know I will be criticized by some as being crazy or out of touch with reality, but I believe we should lock both parents up for ten years. Put that kid in a juvenile home and get his ass straightened out once and for all. It is time we start looking at who is actually responsible for a 10 year-old killing another kid.  Nuff said, and bring it on liberals!

 

Originally posted 2023-06-14 15:21:37.

Current Events

“All Gave Some . . .

6 Comments

But some gave all. And that is what this weekend is all about. So when you gather around the table for some traditional hotdogs and burgers this weekend, remember to hold hands and give a moment of silence to all those service men and women who are resting in ANC and in all those other hundreds of other  cemeteries spread around the world

Jazz Finally at Rest                    By: Greg Maresca

On January 24, 2022, less than a month after Robert “Jazz” Jasinski, celebrated his 60th birthday, his six-decade run on this third post from the sun came to an abrupt and unexpected close. It would not be until May 23, 2023, that his cremains would be finally interred to their ultimate resting place in Arlington National Cemetery.

As the nation prepares to observe Memorial Day, it was certainly a tailored time to have his last and long overdue request realized. The elapsed time of 16-months – two hockey seasons – would have stirred a hearty laugh tinged with a little disgust from my old friend. Jazz was all too familiar with the enduring federal bureaucracy having spent most of his life toiling on the front lines for Uncle Sam – first as a U.S. Marine and then with the Transportation Security Administration.

 The extended and unnecessary ripple effects of COVID-19 still resonate throughout America’s capital city and wokefully ground zero is Arlington National Cemetery. In no way does COVID still make such a prolonged wait for burial justified. It is nothing short of a national disgrace.

We have no issue with packaging multi billions in military aid to Ukraine and thought nothing of bequeathing nearly just as much military hardware to the Taliban in our flight out of Afghanistan – another national disgrace.

Millions pour over our southern border illegally, while we drown in government debt living in a cultural zeitgeist where plenty of folks think nothing of using a $1000 iPhone 14 Pro to check their food stamp balance.

The nation’s capital was like a second home to the Delaware County, Pennsylvania native having done a tour of duty at Marine Corps Headquarters. A favorite D.C. haunt of his was Arlington. Yet, it took 16-months to finally inter Jazz’s ashes among some of the men he served with and those he helped bury while serving with the Corps’ Casualty Notification Unit decades ago.

If Jazz had survived and knew that any veteran had such a long waiting period, he would have been heard. Given the circumstances, he never would have placed himself in a situation to jump the line, either.

Still, with this Memorial Day weekend upon America, we can’t bury some of our veterans in a timely fashion at the nation’s most hallowed and historic burial grounds affording closure for so many families.

There still exists a third of America who takes seriously the nation’s oldest president whose administration is devoid of many things, most of all – wisdom. According to Biden’s recent commencement address at nearby Howard University, America’s greatest threats are not foreign, but domestic. Is it any wonder why on this Memorial Day weekend, the nation is circling the drain of the abyss?

A call to Arlington’s general service number yielded nothing but excuses, namely COVID overkill. What was emphasized was how Arlington conducts approximately 6,400 burials a year averaging 30 per day. Their backlog consists of 4,500 extending the wait to 16 months – now in its third year.

Unanswered in another column from a year ago was when Biden abandoned Afghanistan in record time, why couldn’t he sign another one of his numerous presidential executive orders to expedite laying to rest heroic American veterans in a timely fashion?

Pulling punches is not in the Jasinski DNA as Jazz’s older brother Stan was generous providing solutions saying, “They (Arlington) need to think out of the box by holding larger ceremonies for groups at a time, use special ceremonial units or ROTC for extra manpower to reduce the wait. They have got to stop this ‘is what we have always done mentality.’”

Arlington guards the remains of more than 330,000 immortal souls buried under plain, white granite stones all in formation where every day is Memorial Day, and where waiting lists should be entrusted to the dustbin of history.

Arlington is the priciest of American real estate and is the unabridged narrative of the nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. And my old friend, whose ashes now finally rest here, would stress in no uncertain terms that we need to keep it that way.

Rest easy, Jazz, you are finally home.

Yes, may God please bless Jazz, and all the others who have served this once famous country. Amen

Postscript: I just received some very bad news from a Marine Brother, Sam Garland. Our best friend and brother Marine hero, LtCol Vic Taylor, USMC (Ret) from Steamboat Springs, CO has passed away. We know none of the details at this time. When I get more information, I will pass it along on here.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 An older picture (1959) of Vic as a LCpl

 

Originally posted 2023-05-28 10:52:31.

Current Events

D-Day Approaches

6 Comments

Hi Gang, the D in this case stands for DEBT, our countries debt! I hesitated to post this article, but I really think it needs to be out there so people understand what is going on in our country today economically. As a self-made Economist who loves the topic and follows it more than anything else we are about to reach a turning point in America. June 1st is D-Day folks. This has never happened in the USA and if it does this time, it will have far reaching impact on many things, not to even mention America’s reputation throughout the world. I’ll save my further comments  after you read it.

15 May 2023
Military.com | By  Rebecca Kheel

Billions of dollars of veterans benefits could be imperiled if the U.S. defaults on its debts, though the full extent of the fallout is uncertain because of the unprecedented nature of a default.

About $12 billion in veterans benefits are expected to be paid out June 1 — the same day the Treasury Department has named as the earliest day a default could happen if Congress doesn’t act to avoid it.

A default would likely delay those benefits, but for exactly how long would depend on the Treasury’s next move after a default, experts who spoke to Military.com said.

“There is significant uncertainty as to what would occur because we’ve never been there,” said Rachel Snyderman, senior associate director of business and economic policy for the Bipartisan Policy Center, the Washington, D.C., think tank that estimated how much money in veterans benefits is due to be paid in June.

At issue is what’s known as the debt ceiling or debt limit, which is the amount of money the Treasury can borrow in order to pay the nation’s bills. The exact timing of the “X date,” or the day the Treasury runs out of cash, is a moving target since it depends on how much tax revenue comes in, but Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned it could happen as soon as June 1. If you care to, look up this idiots bio and see how many Econ courses she has ever taken. She just learned how to spell Treasury when she got the job.

Pentagon officials have sounded the alarm about how a default could affect paychecks for service members.

House Republicans are demanding spending cuts in exchange for lifting the ceiling. The White House has maintained Congress should raise the ceiling immediately to avoid even the specter of a default and that any talks about spending cuts should be handled separately, though President Joe Biden has signaled an openness to clawing back unspent COVID-19 funds as Republicans have demanded. LOL, Biden wants to raise the ceiling THEN talk about cuts, that is so funny, it’s crazy. Does anyone really believe he means that. One of those famous, “The check is in the mail ” statements.. And they are still paying COVID payments? 

With the deadline fast approaching, Biden and congressional leaders met at the White House last week, and staff-level talks have continued since then. A second meeting between Biden and congressional leaders had been scheduled for Friday but was canceled. Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., are next scheduled to meet Tuesday, Biden said Monday.

McCarthy sounded a pessimistic note Monday, telling reporters he thinks the two sides are still “far apart” and that it “seems like [administration officials] want to default more than they want a deal.” Certainly, so they can blame it all on the GOP

While the Biden administration and House Republicans have been trading accusations about whether the GOP proposal to slash overall government spending would mean cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs, less talked about has been how veterans could be affected by a default.

The Bipartisan Policy Center’s estimate of payments that could be missed, including veterans benefits, is based on analysis of past Treasury reports on its daily transactions, Snyderman said. The estimate for veterans benefits covers any benefit administered by the VA, she said.

In addition to the June 1 payment, another round of veterans benefits is expected to be paid June 30.

“With each additional day that impasse continues, there could be an exponential impact on what that payment delay could look like,” Snyderman said.

Experts see two possible scenarios for how the Treasury could try to pay U.S. bills after hitting the debt ceiling. In one scenario, the Treasury could choose to prioritize making certain payments before others as cash comes in. In that case, how long veterans benefits and military pay is delayed would depend on where they fall in line for priorities. Yellen has downplayed the possibility of prioritizing payments, doubting that it is technically feasible.

In another scenario, the Treasury could wait until it has enough cash in hand to make a full day’s worth of payments in the order in which they came due. Then, if a default happened June 1, veterans benefits due that day might see only a short delay, but delays for later veterans benefits and other payments would grow the longer the impasse lasts.

“We’ve never defaulted, and we’ve never breached the debt limit, and because it’s so unfathomable, there’s no public playbook for what to do in a situation when this happens,” said Marc Goldwein, senior vice president and senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

“Some prioritization is probably possible, but it would be difficult for them to justify continuing to pay full veterans benefits and not paying other things,” he added. “It’s possible they would do that. Veterans are very popular. But I think we should assume that at least payments would be delayed.”

A lengthy default could equate to up to 30% in cuts for non-interest government spending, Goldwein said.

In addition to potentially hitting veterans benefits, about $12 billion in military and civilian retirement pay that is expected June 1 and about $4 billion in military salaries that is scheduled for June 15 could be disrupted by a default, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin alluded to the potential effect on military pay in congressional testimony last week.

“What it would mean realistically for us is that we won’t, in some cases, be able to pay our troops with any degree of predictability,” Austin said at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing Thursday. No kidding Jose, someone woke this fool up, go back to sleep you POS.

Administration officials issued similar warnings the last time the U.S. was close to a default in 2021. That year, Congress approved a debt limit increase with days to spare after Senate Republicans agreed not to block legislation. While Democrats controlled both chambers of Congress at the time, they didn’t have the 60 votes typically needed to advance legislation in the Senate.

The negotiating dynamics are different this time because Republicans now control the House. The last debt ceiling crisis when Republicans held the House and Democrats controlled the White House and the Senate in 2011 ended with an agreement to lift the debt ceiling in exchange for steep spending cuts.

— Rebecca Kheel can be reached at rebecca.kheel@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @reporterkheel.

Okay, here is my take.  First of all I find it interesting  the only folks they are talking about being hurt are the military and the VA recipients, what about all the others who will be impacted by this, hopefully including all the illegals, welfare, elected officials, and government workers in general. No, they want to hit home to the compassionate types. Oh dear me, our soldiers and our vets. Hogwash! We’ll handle it.

My take. I want the USA to default, I really do. I know that sounds crazy, but I personally and professionally as an Economist, hope McCarthy stands his ground and doesn’t give Biden one inch. Then we’ll see how all those department heads who got their job, not because of their intelligence or background, but because of their sexual orientation, skin color, or whatever figure out how to handle the issues brought about by a default.

I’m living on a military retirement and am a VA recipient so this will hurt Nancy and I very much. But, we CANNOT keep raising the debt limit and keep spending and spending, Can you imagine what thirty trillion dollars looks like folks. No you can’t, and neither can any of us.

I have written all three of my national elected officials and told them to stand their ground, make everyone hurt so they understand what is at stake here. I encourage you to do the same, then tighten your belt. Nuff said. Semper Fi,

Originally posted 2023-05-16 17:08:53.