Certainly not suggesting anything, but it could happen like this, except nobody leaves town until the resignations begin to be televised and new elections announced.
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| Government |
| Thousands of California soldiers forced to repay enlistment bonuses a decade after going to war |
| 2016-10-23 |
| [LA Times] Short of troops to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan a decade ago, the California National Guard enticed thousands of soldiers with bonuses of $15,000 or more to reenlist and go to war. Now the Pentagon is demanding the money back. Nearly 10,000 soldiers, many of whom served multiple combat tours, have been ordered to repay large enlistment bonuses -- and slapped with interest charges, wage garnishments and tax liens if they refuse -- after audits revealed widespread overpayments by the California Guard at the height of the wars last decade. Investigations have determined that lack of oversight allowed for widespread fraud and mismanagement by California Guard officials under pressure to meet enlistment targets. But soldiers say the military is reneging on 10-year-old agreements and imposing severe financial hardship on veterans whose only mistake was to accept bonuses offered when the Pentagon needed to fill the ranks. "These bonuses were used to keep people in," said Christopher Van Meter, a 42-year-old former Army captain and Iraq veteran from Manteca, Calif., who says he refinanced his home mortgage to repay $25,000 in reenlistment bonuses and $21,000 in student loan repayments that the Army says he should not have received. "People like me just got screwed." In Iraq, Van Meter was thrown from an armored vehicle turret -- and later awarded a Purple Heart for his combat injuries -- after the vehicle detonated a buried roadside bomb. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #14 Obama has been trying for years to fine anyone who is in the military. Every time the Repunycans threaten to shut down the government, Obama threatens to cease paying military payroll. With only a few months of Whitehouse occupation, Obama finally found a way to fine military personal. Mission accomplished. |
| Posted by: Huperese Platypus6497 2016-10-23 20:38 |
| #13 Trump should pay for this bullshit. That would garner him more votes than any commercial on the leftist controlled television station. |
| Posted by: chris 2016-10-23 19:40 |
| #12 1) There has to be some sort of statute of limitations on something like this. 2) President Trump will reverse this. |
| Posted by: Raj 2016-10-23 14:09 |
| #11 Is this a program intended to get enlistments to fall? Who benefits from a weakened American military? I have not heard of audits and investigation into foreign aid fraud ,have you? What about welfare and ebt fraud where money is given with no service in return. This stinks to high heaven. |
| Posted by: Rob06 2016-10-23 12:45 |
| #10 Do they want the military to cross he Rubicon? 'cuz this is how you get them to do it. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2016-10-23 10:55 |
| #9 ....they'd hit the SGLI recipient(s) who wouldn't know enough to squawk about it. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2016-10-23 10:04 |
| #8 Are the estates of the soldiers who died down range being hit up by the accountants as well? If so then THAT needs to be publicized |
| Posted by: Angusong Big Foot2908 2016-10-23 09:45 |
| #7 I'm not suggesting anything either, but the left really, really wants to neuter the 2nd. They most likely have considered the scenario of a 20M man march on D.C. with firearms. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2016-10-23 08:30 |
| #6 Certainly not suggesting anything, but it could happen like this, except nobody leaves town until the resignations begin to be televised and new elections announced. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2016-10-23 08:04 |
| #5 #4Â Â What's laughable is they pull crap like this and then expect the military to be on their side in a civil war? The ruling class is living in an illusion. When the inevitable happens, they will only have a crumbling MSM, Hollywood, Wall Street, and government bureaucrats, and little food and few survival skills on their side. They will not have the military, cops, gun owners, business people, or most people in fly-over land on their side. People are tired of getting screwed over and over by the ruling elite who live in a bubble. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2016-10-23 07:56 |
| #4 What's laughable is they pull crap like this and then expect the military to be on their side in a civil war? |
| Posted by: Silentbrick 2016-10-23 04:46 |
| #3 The VA stinks. Won't pay for heart attacks during fitness tests. Won't pay bonuses. So, who wants to go next? |
| Posted by: gorb 2016-10-23 04:35 |
| #2 It's like American ruling class trying to provoke a revolution. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2016-10-23 04:13 |
| #1 'Nothing is too good for the soldier, and that's generally what they get.' |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2016-10-23 03:30 |