GOP Bankruptcy Vote Comes Back to Crush U.S. Troops

[James"Thunder"Early]

Real nice of the GOP, real nice

GOP Bankruptcy Vote Comes Back to Crush U.S. Troops

by David Sirota

http://www.opednews.com

Back in 2005, when the credit card industry lobbyists were corralling republican and Democratic lawmakers to vote for the corporate-written Bankruptcy Bill, Sen. Dick Durbin offered an amendment (details attached) to preserve existing protections for troops serving in Iraq. National guardsmen, for instance, sometimes are forced to take a pay cut from their regular jobs when they are called into service and deployed overseas. Lord knows our soldiers serving in Iraq have enough to worry about - and gutting their bankruptcy protections while they were deployed was something Durbin thought was unacceptable. Unfortunately, only 38 of his Senate colleagues agreed with him, and his amendment was defeated. Those voting against the amendment included Montana Sen. Conrad Burns (R), Ohio Sen. Mike DeWine (R), Virginia Sen. George Felix Allen, Jr., Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum (R), Missouri Sen. Jim Talent (R), Rhode Island Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R) - all incumbents facing serious challenges for reelection.

Now, according to a new Pentagon report highlighted by USA Today (story linked below), "As many as one in five members of the armed services are being preyed on by loan centers set up near military bases that can charge cash-strapped military families interestso of 400% or more." Let's be clear - trying to take advantage of soldiers at a time of war when they are under stress is a form of war profiteering. And thanks to our bought-off Congress - it's all perfectly legal. Here's hoping the senators who voted against Durbin's amendment get hammered for it.

To see the original Senate vote, go to:
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/li...n=1&vote=00013

To see background on Durbin's amendment, go to:
http://durbin.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=233501

To see the USA Today story, go to:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...ry-loans_x.htm

[Ohio8]

This November, I am DEFINITELY going to vote Mike DeWine out of office (I live in his Senatorial district).

[Central Perk]

That's sad. I'm surprised Lincoln Chafee opposed it.

[Mr. Cranky]

The troops can still file for bankruptcy. As usual, the sky is falling libs toss out a couple of isolated worst case instances. Our troops have to stay away from predatory lenders, like the rest of us. That bankruptcy bill was long overdue.

Dick Turbin, of all people. He's the rat who compared our troops to Nazis, Gitmo to Pol Pot, gulags. He said he based his claims on an "undocumented" FBI memo. He must have got it from Dan Rather. Word is Rather got it from a fax in Abiline, Texas.

Nice credentials from the author of this hit piece. No bias here.

David Sirota is the co-chairperson of the Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN) - a position he took after finishing a stint as a fellow at the Center for American Progress. He is also a writer for Working Assets, and a twice-a-week guest on the Al Franken Show. He also writes a bi-weekly section for the Nation Magazine called Permanent Minority vs. Towards the Majority about Democrats failures and successes. For more on what he does, see this
Washington Post story about his blog, or this Newsweek profile about him. Email him at david@davidsirota.com with any thoughts/ criticism. Note: this online publication represents his personal views, and not the official views of the organizations he works with. OpEdNews only publishes a portion of David's writings. It's worth signing up for his regular email list at http://davidsirota.com

[James"Thunder"Early]

Originally Posted by FOX NEWS RULES

The troops can still file for bankruptcy. As usual, the sky is falling libs toss out a couple of isolated worst case instances. Our troops have to stay away from predatory lenders, like the rest of us. That bankruptcy bill was long overdue.

The Bankruptcy bill was not overdue, it was nothing but a gift from the GOP to the creditors and banks. The Pentagon is the one who found the problem, that's not exactly some liberal bastion.

Dick Turbin, of all people. He's the rat who compared our troops to Nazis, Gitmo to Pol Pot, gulags. He said he based his claims on an "undocumented" FBI memo. He must have got it from Dan Rather. Word is Rather got it from a fax in Abiline, Texas.

And what does this nonsense have to do with the price of tea in China?

[Mr. Cranky]

Originally Posted by James"Thunder"Early

The Bankruptcy bill was not overdue, it was nothing but a gift from the GOP to the creditors and banks. The Pentagon is the one who found the problem, that's not exactly some liberal bastion.

And what does this nonsense have to do with the price of tea in China?

Only a lib would call Turbin Durbin's words against the troops nonsense.

The connection is, stay with me here, is that Durbin's the one bitching about the bankruptcy bill. He's full of it. He called our troops Nazis. Got it now? Let me know. I explain it in even more simpler terms if need be.

Troops, like the rest of us, can't live beyond their means or use credit cards excessively. Bankruptcy was getting out of hand. People were filing, then having a field day, and then filing again. The cost got passed down to the consumer. I read last week that bankruptcy filings are down 67% this year.

[James"Thunder"Early]

Originally Posted by FOX NEWS RULES

Only a lib would call Turbin Durbin's words against the troops nonsense.

The connection is, stay with me here, is that Durbin's the one bitching about the bankruptcy bill. He's full of it. He called our troops Nazis. Got it now? Let me know. I explain it in even more simpler terms if need be.

He said it about the troops that were doing things that were wrong. The connection is nonsense, because he wasn't labeling all troops with his statement just the ones doing things they shouldn't have been doing.

Troops, like the rest of us, can't live beyond their means or use credit cards excessively. Bankruptcy was getting out of hand. People were filing, then having a field day, and then filing again. The cost got passed down to the consumer. I read last week that bankruptcy filings are down 67% this year.

You know not everyone lives beyond their means, some people have mortgages and medical bills, it's not as black and white as you paint it. People in those situations have to file bankruptcy, their not trying to get away with anything.

[Mr. Cranky]

Originally Posted by James"Thunder"Early

He said it about the troops that were doing things that were wrong, but he apologized for it, so it's irrelevant now. The connection is nonsense.

Right, based on an FBI document that he couldn't produce. He apologized. Big freakin deal. So our troops behaved like Nazis at Gitmo? Get real.

You know not everyone lives beyond their means, some people have mortgages and medical bills, it's not as black and white as you paint it. People in those situations have to file bankruptcy, their not trying to get away with anything.

They can still file for bankruptcy. It's not against the law. It's just not the cake walk it used to be. Now it weeds out the deadbeats.