Memo from veterans to Representative Thelma Drake: Get your talking points from someone who actually served in the military rather than the chickenhawk apologists who denigrate the value of military service and whose absence of strategic prowess has placed our national security at risk.
In a rambling discussion on WNIS radio "Macrini's Morning News Team" today, Representative Drake (R-VA 2nd District) demonstrated her superficial knowledge of almost every issue important to the Hampton Roads region, from Walter Reed, privatization of military and VA services, the strain on the Army, and service in combat zones to voting on bills never read, socialized medicine, the judiciary, the minimum wage, and Viet Nam. Oh, and she misses out on some "initials" that might be important.
Beginning with her assessment of the crisis at Walter Reed she summed it up with, "?bottom line I think you're going to see a lot of activity." That a lot of activity satisfies and suffices is telling. She stated that she had received no complaints about Walter Reed; had received some complaints about Hampton. And that was about the depth of her discussion of an issue that will be with us for years to come.
Somehow, she conjured up a reference to BRAC that was supposed to explain away the conditions at Walter Reed. This bit of rambling led to a comment that she "?did ask the question if Walter Reed should remain open." And the answer she received from some unnamed oracle was that ?the new facility at Bethesda will suffice.
When the issue of private contractors raised its head, she was quick to defend the concept of privatization and went on about the work at Building 18 saying "?When I saw it, the room had been repaired. " Pressed about whether Army resources are stretched by the requirements in the Iraq theater she attempted to minimize the impact by stating "Oh, I think there's a lot of Army that's right here, right now?"
On the privatization of many functions once performed by the military Representative Drake provided this gem:"?those people working in the mess hall and driving trucks aren't defending our country." Interestingly, in another outsourcing event during World War II, the organized military forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts were used to perform services our own military could not. For years their service was treated with the same lack of appreciation as the service that is being rendered by private contractors in Iraq today. The former neglect has morphed into an appreciation of those contributions demonstrated by House Bill 760, Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007; a bill she co-sponsors. Seems that in about 50 years she might appreciate that the people doing jobs in Iraq are doing our bidding and come to realize that mess men are soldiers too. And, by the way, I am sure that all those truck drivers, mess men, and mechanics alive today who served this nation with courage in World War II, Korea, and Viet Nam will take exception to her characterization of their service.
In answer to a question about how she votes on a bill, she made the comment that "It's impossible to read a bill." She discussed how she had had time to read every bill when she was a member of the Virginia General Assembly, but that the bills before her now are voluminous. Then she carried on, eventually asking a rhetorical, "How do you know what the changes are?"
Well, Representative Drake, that might be a function your staff should fulfill. But let me throw something out here. The Library of Congress makes it easy to get the gist of the changes using THOMAS. Maybe the link to "Text of Legislation" might be helpful. There is a summary. There is the text.
There was a Rovian effort to discredit the entire Democratic Party by mischaracterizing a letter about union organization sent to Mexico. And somehow that was supposed to show that Democrats do not respect the sanctity of the ballot box. Maybe someone else can make those connections. She didn't do well by it.
And then there was the woman who phoned in because her letter to Representative Drake had not been answered. Representative Drake's first question was "Where did you send it?" When the woman answered that she had sent it to the office in Washington, DC, Representative Drake remarked, "That's your first mistake, send it to the local office." There followed a discussion about a post office in Ohio and anthrax and then rattling off the local address to which the caller said "I'm legally blind so I can't write it down." Representative Drake did offer to get back with her. The caller concluded by making a remark about her disdain for socialized medicine.
This sent Representative Drake off on a diatribe about Walter Reed being an example of how the VA and represented socialized medicine. This was followed by a depiction of Canadian medicine based upon her experience with her grandmother. Well, the VA isn't socialized medicine; it's an obligation to service members who have sacrificed for their nation. Services rendered have been pre-paid. And Walter Reed is not part of the VA. Details; messy details.
Somehow she went to her playbook by addressing her complaints about the courts. "Our courts have been legislating from the bench," she boldly played to her audience. Okay, I suppose this was her mantra but the context was absurd.
She discussed the minimum wage. She noted that if the minimum wage is raised, you have to raise the cost of your product. Again, either ignorance or fear mongering. But even though that is the essence of her objection, she can support the raise under certain circumstances. These have something to do with tax credits, it seems to businesses. So what I have gleaned from this is that the market forces work well when we don't have taxes and/or workers have no form of collective bargaining, but the moment taxes are imposed or someone represents the worker's interests, the market fails. The supply side must have all the power. No, wait, only the capital part of the supply side can have power; the labor component should rely on the virtue and moral imperative of other forces.
Following this, there was an inane vignette about Iraqi military officers visiting Washington DC seeing children on the Capitol steps and saying that that was what they wanted for their country one day; children sitting on the Capitol steps. Somehow for her, that telescopes to all of Iraq wanting the same thing in the same way and appreciating all that America has done. This led to her assessment of the difference between Viet Nam and Iraq. You see, it seems that there are people in this conflict who want to come to America and do it harm. "That wasn't true of Viet Nam," she averred. Selective memory? No sense of history at all? That same rationalization was used during Viet Nam, Representative Drake. You may have heard of the Domino Theory. Or, not. Confer with the neocons.
Then came the call about PTSD treatments available through the VA. The question was involved. There was an uncomfortable pause. My heart sank. I only wish I could have been in the studio to witness the expression on the Representative's face to confirm my suspicions. Tony Macrini finally said, "post traumatic stress syndrome." To which Representative Drake finally remarked, "Oh yeah, we talk in initials (sic)." And when the gent explained he thought that there should be more options for treatment in the VA, she responded that there is a process and a method for the treatments that are available, but concluded that people should be allowed to "pick what works for them."
You can't make this stuff up. I have suspected that she takes her direction from a neocon handicap sheet before she expresses her opinion or casts her votes. Today's discussion provided an even more disappointing explanation of her record on the issues. She simply believes what she is told by those to whom she defers as a result of the "authority" of their position. How very un-American.