Each day, that the Republicans continue to block the PACT Act more of our veterans will die.
Republicans are playing politics with our veterans lives, because they do not want the Inflation Reduction Act to pass which will reduce inflation, tackle climate change, reduce health care costs, and give the middle class a tax break. Republicans do not want President Biden to get a victory with this important Act that the overwhelming majority of Americans want, so they are willing to block this extremely important life saving veterans bill (PACT Act) out of spite. These same Republicans supported this bill just a few weeks ago and now they are blocking it for political purposes.
As I keep saying, Republicans do not care about you or your family. They vote against them every single time. Republicans do not care about our veterans suffering from cancer and other diseases, they use them as pawns for their political games like they are doing now. Republicans do not want the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 to pass because they won't be able to falsely attack President Biden on Twitter and tv anymore over inflation. The same inflation that the entire world is going through.
So, Republicans are willing to continue to make our vets suffer so they can stop a major bill that will reduce inflation, prescription drug costs, and help with our climate crisis. Absolutely disgraceful.
Why are these Republicans in office when they refuse to do the work that the American people demand?
Ever since Biden came into office, the Republican playbook has been for the Republican House to vote "NO" on major important bills and then the Republican Senate will block the bills from becoming law. By doing this, the legislation won't get passed and Republicans can then attack President Biden and Democrats for "not doing anything". Republicans believe that using obstruction will help them politically in November. So, Republicans have no interest in helping Americans, all they want to do is play political games hoping to regain power.
Republicans were doing everything they could to stop the "Build Back Better Act" from passing, but now that this ACT is a condensed version of the Inflation Reduction Act, they are outraged that Joe Manchin has signed on to the bill to get it passed so they are purposely tanking this veterans PACT Act. It's pure politics and it's disgraceful.
Democrats are working to make people's lives better while Republicans just want to create more problems. These are the same Republicans who lied about phony election fraud and attempted a coup to illegally keep Trump in power. And now they are doing everything possible trying to prevent the Inflation Reduction Act from passing because they want inflation to remain high because they believe it helps them politically.
Republicans do not care about inflation, if they did they would vote "YES" for the Inflation Reduction Act reduce inflation. All they want to do is feign outrage on tv and Twitter to falsely attack President Biden and Democrats hoping to score political points. They do this with every important bill they vote "NO" on or block in the Senate. It's all political theatre. If Republicans actually cared, they would be passing these bills and not trying to stop them from passing. Always look at their actions and not their words.
Senate Republicans burned a bill that would have helped veterans — here’s whyDemocrats say the reason is over unrelated pending bills.:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71191588/1242171980.0.jpg)
Republicans blocked a bill on Wednesday that many saw as a bipartisan slam dunk — it aimed to expand certain benefits for veterans due to toxic exposure they experienced while deployed — leaving many veterans and their supporters shocked.
The PACT Act, a bill that would have expanded the Department of Veterans Affairs health care to presume veterans whose military service included exposure to burn pits — large trenches dug to burn and dispose of sewage, medical waste, and other trash — to be victims of exposure to toxic substances and fumes when they have symptoms of certain illnesses. The bill would have removed the burden of proof veterans currently need to show in order to receive assistance.
Both houses of Congress previously passed the bill, with the Senate voting 84-14 in June in favor, but the bill was forced into another vote after “administrative issues” were found in its text. After changes were made, it was expected to breeze through Congress and be signed into law by President Joe Biden.
However, 25 Republican senators flipped their vote and blocked the bill on Wednesday.
Supporters and activists, such as former talk show host Jon Stewart, who had gathered at the Capitol hoping for a celebration following the bill’s passing, instead were met with frustration. On Thursday, Stewart and others joined lawmakers such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to forcefully call out Republicans for voting down the bill.
“They don’t have to hear it, they don’t have to see it, they don’t have to understand that these are human beings. Do we get it yet? These aren’t heroes, these are men and women,” Stewart said in a speech at the Capitol on Thursday.
With the final tally in the Senate on Wednesday at 55-42 (three abstaining), Republicans claim the exact reason why they flipped has nothing to do with the bill’s focus, but rather how the funds would be allocated and managed.
Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA), who led opposition to the bill, expressed his desire for an amendment focused on budgetary spending.
"There is a mechanism created in this bill, it’s a budgetary gimmick, that has the intent of making it possible to have a huge explosion in unrelated spending — $400 billion. This budgetary gimmick is so unrelated to the actual budgetary issue that has to do with burn pits that it’s not even in the House bill,” Toomey said on the Senate floor Wednesday.
Toomey told CNN he wants the funding of the bill handled through an annual appropriations process, rather than the current mandatory spending structure.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he also does not support the ”budgetary gimmick” but does support the bill.
The question remains why more than two dozen Republicans, many veterans themselves, voted for it last month but flipped this week. According to some Democrats, the bill was blocked for political benefit.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) alternatively argues that Republicans took out their anger over a separate bill on the PACT Act. Democrats are attempting to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes a historic $369 billion to be spent over the next 10 years to address climate change, health care, inflation, and taxes.
“The less charitable explanation is this,” Murphy said, about why so many Republicans flipped, “Republicans are mad that Democrats are on the verge of passing climate change legislation and have decided to take out their anger on vulnerable veterans. Because that’s the other thing that’s changed in the last three weeks. Republicans thought that Democrats weren’t going to be able to pass a bill asking corporations to pay a little bit more, tackling climate change. Yesterday, news emerged that there is an agreement that makes it likely that a climate change bill is going to proceed on the Senate floor, and magically 30 votes flip.”
This switch, Democrats say, came as a reaction to the Inflation Reduction Act, which is expected to be voted on this week.
The Democratic candidate for an open Senate seat in Missouri, Lucas Kunce, echoed the sentiment in an interview with Vox. “They had voted for it the first time, they changed because they want to protest a separate bill is what I understand,” he said. Kunce served three tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan as a Marine officer and was deployed in Iraq where he was stationed near a burn pit and developed a post-nasal drip due to his exposure.
Vox’s Li Zhou also recently reported that Republicans do not want the Inflation Reduction Act to pass and need unanimous support to stop it. Given that Biden came out in praise of it, the bill has a high possibility of passing.
What the bill is, and why it mattersThe Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act, otherwise known as the PACT Act, was introduced in June by Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), who chairs the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, with the aim to address and fund health care, research, and other matters related to veterans who were exposed to toxic substances during service.
The bill contains two major components — a grace period for veterans who served near burn pits to get medical care, and legislation that tells the VA how to approach certain illnesses and cancers. Veterans would not have to prove that their illnesses are directly related to burn pit exposure to receive disability payments and assistance. Currently, more than 70 percent of disability claims related to burn pit exposure are denied by the VA due to veterans’ inability to prove their illnesses or cancers are linked to exposure to burn pits.
Cancers and other issues alleged to be related to burn pits can come years later, as happened to Sgt. Heath Robinson, whom the bill is named after. Robinson died in 2020 of a rare lung cancer he attributed to smoke exposure during his deployment in Iraq in 2006 and 2007.
Kunce said he felt that many in the armed services assumed they wouldn’t be put in such a harmful situation. “[It was] probably a dumb assumption to make, but ... you gotta trust the system, first of all,” Kunce said. “Second of all, you’ve got no choice, right? I mean, you’re there, there’s nothing else you could do.”
Robinson’s wife Danielle, an advocate for burn pit exposure victims who have been denied benefits, attended Biden’s State of the Union address earlier this year, where he laid out his support for enhancing veterans’ benefits as part of his so-called bipartisan “unity agenda” which, among other things, focuses on the commitment to veterans by delivering on promises made regarding health care, mental health, and homelessness.
The PACT Act also plays into a broader conversation that’s happening over veterans’ rights. In June, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision in favor of a veteran whose case was related to burn pit exposure in Torres v. Texas Department of Public Safety. The ruling allowed US Army veteran Le Roy Torres to sue the state of Texas after losing his job due to an injury he received while serving.
What’s next?Activists, lawmakers, and veterans alike are demanding further action, with some even calling the vote criminal as they criticize Republicans for stopping the bill.
“Wait a minute. You’re not gonna help our veterans, because we want to: lower the cost of prescription drugs, the cost of health care, to protect the planet. Of course you don’t agree with any of those things, but would you use that to vote against our veterans? It’s really immoral, almost criminal,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Another procedural vote is set for Monday, but Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer can technically call the Senate to a vote at any time. In light of the congressional recess beginning on August 5, timeliness will be key.
https://www.vox.com/2022/7/30/23284976/senate-republicans-pact-act-veteransJon Stewart is Right to Angry About the PACT ActThe comedian and activist spent the weekend calling out Ted Cruz and Republicans for using veterans as political pawns.
Jon Stewart went on a media blitz over the weekend, appearing on everything from MSNBC and Meet the Press to conservative channels like Fox News and Newsmax to call out Republican Senators like Ted Cruz for torpedoing a piece of legislation titled the PACT Act that provides healthcare for U.S. veterans.
He even made his own video, which he posted on socials. (More on that below.) Which is all to say: Jon Stewart is pissed—and rightfully so. But maybe you're seeing a lot of Jon Stewart headlines and are just...confused. Here's what went down.
What is the PACT Act?In a speech on the Senate floor, Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) described the PACT Act as “groundbreaking legislation” that grants veterans expedited access to healthcare for exposure to toxic chemicals.
The bill is named after Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson who served in Iraq and died in 2020 from exposure to toxins emitted by burn pits during the Iraq War. Trash burning was a common practice during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Military personnel frequently used burn pits to get rid of trash, munition, food waste, human waste, medical waste, petroleum, plastics, and wood.
Despite the clear link between exposure to burn pits and poor health, veterans still struggle to secure healthcare for related issues. In July, the Associated Press reported that the VA denies more than 70 percent of burn pit disability claims due to lack of evidence. The PACT Act would rectify this injustice by forcing the VA to presume that certain illnesses, including nine types of rare respiratory cancers, were caused by burn pit exposure, thus eliminating the burden of proof and streamlining access to live-saving healthcare.
Why is Jon Stewart so mad at Ted Cruz?Stewart has been a vocal supporter of the PACT Act since 2020 and has a long history of advocating for legislation related to first responders and veterans. He previously championed a bill that granted lifelong compensation and healthcare to 9/11 first responders. It passed the Senate in 2019, 92-2.
The PACT Act seemed destined for a similarly successful, bipartisan victory until Thursday, when 25 Republican senators who previously voted in favor of the bill in June (a technical change the House made to the bill required the Senate to pass it again) changed their minds and voted against it. This sudden change in heart didn’t sit well with Stewart. He smelled something fishy and immediately accused senators like Ted Cruz of playing political games with veterans’ lives. “The bill that Ted Cruz voted yes on had the exact same funding provisions as the bill he voted no on, '' said Stewart on Meet the Press. “It’s the exact same bill. None of this makes any sense.”
Stewart also attacked Cruz on Twitter in a series of posts and videos in which he took issue with Cruz’s sudden interest in how pre-existing veteran support spending (about $400 billions worth) is categorized. Citing an argument first expressed by retiring Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA), Cruz alleges that the PACT Act includes a “gimmick” that would allow Democrats to go on a massive spending spree by recategorizing the already authorized spending as mandatory (as opposed to discretionary). Mandatory spending isn’t subjected to annual congressional appropriations.
Jon Stewart @jonstewartMessage to and from Mister Senator Ted Cruz...Attorney at Law
#PassthePactactWatch: https://twitter.com/i/status/1553127778169536513“This is no trick,” Stewart said, in response to a TMZ video of Cruz claiming the Democrats are trying to pull a fast one on the American people. “... It’s always been mandatory spending so that the government can’t just cut off their funding at any point. No trick. No gimmick. It’s been there the whole f****g time.”
What’s Republican opposition to the PACT Act really about?Cruz claims to oppose the PACT Act because of all the pork that’s stuffed inside it, but given that it’s the same bill he already voted for, very few people believe him. Video footage of Cruz and Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) celebrating the bill’s defeat with a fist-bump has cast even more doubt on their explanation. Sen. Murphy and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), plus a handful of pundits, have proposed an alternate theory.
MeidasTouch @MeidasTouchThis is the fist bump everyone needs to be talking about.
Ted Cruz and fellow Republicans celebrating after blocking a bill to help toxin-exposed veterans survive.Watch: https://twitter.com/i/status/1553037966057955328"What happened in 2 weeks that convinced 30 Republicans who previously thought it was a good idea to help veterans to decide instead to tank a bill that was helping veterans?” asked Sen. Murphy in his Senate floor speech. Well, the most obvious answer is the surprise announcement of the Inflation Reduction Act, a compromise bill proposed by Sen. Joe Manchin that’s been hailed by the press as a major legislative victory for the Democrats. You know who doesn’t like Democrat victories? Republicans. Reacting to the Republicans’ blocking of the PACT Act on the PBS Newshour, David Brooks summed up the potential hideousness of the situation saying, “If the votes changed because Mitch McConnell said, ‘ We need to screw somebody,’ well that would just be appalling.”
Watch:Despite the bill's recent failure, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed to bring the PACT Act up again for a vote this week before the Senate breaks for its August recess.
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a40772443/jon-stewart-ted-cruz-pact-act/
