The battle over the GI Bill
Posted: Thursday, May 15, 2008 11:15 AM by Mark Murray
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Congress
From NBC's Ken Strickland and NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann
McCain found himself on the losing end of a fight on Senate floor yesterday -- a fight he wasn't even there for. In a long distance face-off between a campaigning McCain and fellow Vietnam war vet Sen. Jim Webb, the issue was who best crafted a new GI bill that would pay for veterans to go to college. McCain's version, backed by the White House, was killed on the Senate floor.
McCain's defeat came not only at the hands of Democrats, but by the hands of six of his Republican colleagues -- among them war veterans John Warner and Chuck Hagel. Those Republicans and a few others had previously signed on as co-sponsors to Webb's measure.
In the simplest terms, the Webb bill would effectively pay for tuition and housing at a four-year public college for those serving at least three years of active duty. The McCain measure isn't as generous, as it increases existing education benefits by $400 a month for the same time served: from $1,100 to $1,500.
Democrats accused McCain, and his chief ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, of acting in bad faith by forcing a vote while a compromise bill was being sought. "I think this was an irresponsible act," Webb said after learning Republicans had attached the provision on an unrelated bill on the floor. "There was some wording in a letter that I received a couple of days ago from Senator McCain saying that they ... wanted to work with us to bring a bipartisan bill."
Sen. Dick Durbin, the No.2 Senate Democrat, said it was about the presidential campaign. "He's trying to bring his version of the GI Bill to a vote on the Senate floor, so that he can say that he at least tried -- or at least those who vote his way have some cover," Durbin said.
McCain's supporters shot back. Republican Judd Gregg said it was "public knowledge" the Democrats were planning to block McCain and Graham from offering their bill. "The only way, the only way that Sen. Graham could protect his rights was to bring the amendment forward at this time."
Another difference between the two bills concerns active personnel being able to transfer their educational benefits to their spouse or children. McCain's bill allows 50% of those benefits to be transferred after six years of service; 100% after 12 years.
Webb called transferability "an unproven concept" that's been around for decades. "There has been a pilot program available in current law since [2001] for the United States military to test the transferability program if the service secretaries decided that they wanted to try it," he said. "They haven't really tried it."
The Administration sided with McCain, arguing benefits that were too generous and too early in active duty service would hurt reenlistments -- and would lure service members off of military bases and onto college campuses. "My job is to get people to stay in the military, not only to join, but to stay as well," McCain said from the campaign trail in Ohio Wednesday.
In a letter to McCain last month voicing support, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said, "Transferability supports military families, thereby enhancing retention." Gates added, "Any enhancement of the education benefit, whether used in service or after retirement, must serve to enhance recruiting and not undercut retention."
The GI Bill will likely come before the Senate next week as part of an emergency war-funding bill. From the road, McCain still held out hope a deal could be brokered. "We have written to Sen. Webb and said we wanted to sit down and negotiate," he said, "and he has agreed to do that. I'm sure that we can sit down and work out these differences."
