thedrifter
08-07-07, 07:34 PM
Bill would give deploying troops extra leave
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Aug 7, 2007 11:25:18 EDT
A Delaware congressman is pushing a plan to give returning combat veterans an extra day of leave for every month of deployment, an idea suggested to him by a constituent serving in Iraq.
Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del., said the extra time off is important for decompressing after combat.
“Our troops have gone above and beyond the call of duty to risk their lives, often serving multiple deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan,” he said Monday. “Unfortunately, when these brave men and women return home, they often are faced with post-traumatic stress and other hardships resulting from their deployment in such harsh conditions.”
Castle was promised early Sunday by two key members of the House Appropriations Committee that his plan would be considered as part of the final version of the 2008 defense appropriations bill.
The pledge came from Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., the House defense appropriations subcommittee chairman, and Rep. C.W. “Bill” Young of Florida, the former chairman of the full appropriations committee who is senior Republican on the defense subcommittee. Murtha called it an “important point” that will be considered when the House and Senate meet later this year to write a compromise version of the bill.
Castle said he has no pride of authorship, and would be pleased if anyone could get it passed.
“Perhaps somebody else can borrow it,” he said Sunday during House debate on the defense bill. “I just believe it is something we ought to be thinking about doing for our soldiers who have been called back on a fairly repetitive rotating basis.”
Castle said the idea came in an e-mail from a soldier in Iraq, who he did not identify. Other soldiers endorsed the proposal, Castle said.
Castle said his plan “makes certain our troops are given time to spend with their family and friends when they return from war — which experts have shown is vital for their recuperation.”
Castle, whose congressional district includes Dover Air Force Base, is a former Delaware governor. He has served eight terms in the House of Representatives. He never served in the military and is not on military-related committees in Congress but recently has become increasingly active on national security issues as public opposition to the Iraq has increased.
Castle is among the moderate House Republicans who oppose permanent U.S. bases in Iraq. He has called for a bipartisan Iraq strategy to turn over combat missions to Iraqis so U.S. troops can withdraw.
Ellie
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Aug 7, 2007 11:25:18 EDT
A Delaware congressman is pushing a plan to give returning combat veterans an extra day of leave for every month of deployment, an idea suggested to him by a constituent serving in Iraq.
Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del., said the extra time off is important for decompressing after combat.
“Our troops have gone above and beyond the call of duty to risk their lives, often serving multiple deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan,” he said Monday. “Unfortunately, when these brave men and women return home, they often are faced with post-traumatic stress and other hardships resulting from their deployment in such harsh conditions.”
Castle was promised early Sunday by two key members of the House Appropriations Committee that his plan would be considered as part of the final version of the 2008 defense appropriations bill.
The pledge came from Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., the House defense appropriations subcommittee chairman, and Rep. C.W. “Bill” Young of Florida, the former chairman of the full appropriations committee who is senior Republican on the defense subcommittee. Murtha called it an “important point” that will be considered when the House and Senate meet later this year to write a compromise version of the bill.
Castle said he has no pride of authorship, and would be pleased if anyone could get it passed.
“Perhaps somebody else can borrow it,” he said Sunday during House debate on the defense bill. “I just believe it is something we ought to be thinking about doing for our soldiers who have been called back on a fairly repetitive rotating basis.”
Castle said the idea came in an e-mail from a soldier in Iraq, who he did not identify. Other soldiers endorsed the proposal, Castle said.
Castle said his plan “makes certain our troops are given time to spend with their family and friends when they return from war — which experts have shown is vital for their recuperation.”
Castle, whose congressional district includes Dover Air Force Base, is a former Delaware governor. He has served eight terms in the House of Representatives. He never served in the military and is not on military-related committees in Congress but recently has become increasingly active on national security issues as public opposition to the Iraq has increased.
Castle is among the moderate House Republicans who oppose permanent U.S. bases in Iraq. He has called for a bipartisan Iraq strategy to turn over combat missions to Iraqis so U.S. troops can withdraw.
Ellie