Thanks For Doing His Job

This was certainly an unexpected piece of email:

Dear Darrel Plant,

Great news!

Your senator, Gordon Smith, just took a major step towards making a modern GI Bill a reality by signing onto S.22, the new legislation that is making its way through Congress. As you know, IAVA’s number one priority this year is getting the new GI Bill passed, so that Iraq and Afghanistan veterans can afford to go to college after they return from war.

Please take a minute to call Senator Smith and thank him for his support of this critical legislation. It’s crucial that lawmakers hear from people like you, who are committed to ensuring that our nation’s veterans get the respect they have earned.

Office of Senator Gordon Smith

(202) 224-3753

Below we’ve included some talking points you can use on the call.

Thank you for making your voice heard.

Sincerely,

Todd Bowers

Iraq Veteran

Director of Government Affairs

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

Talking points:

Good morning / evening.

My name is your name and I’m calling from city.

I stand with Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) in their call for a new GI Bill. Troops coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan deserve real education benefits that make college tuition affordable, and I want to thank Senator Smith for signing on to S.22.

Let’s see. More than six years after the invasion of Afghanistan, Smith agrees to fund a program to provide post-service education to veterans — something that should have been a part of the budget from the moment they decided to go into Afghanistan and Iraq — and in which Smith is one of 46 co-sponsors (a list that includes several other Republicans, as well as Oregon’s Other Senator™, Ron Wyden).

That deserves a special “attaboy,” for what, exactly?