John Kline served our country as a Marine Corps officer – and for that he deserves our utmost respect. Unfortunately, as a congressman, his record for veterans doesn’t reflect the same respect for others who have worn our country's uniforms. Here’s how veterans themselves rate John Kline’s performance:

• The American Legion identifies bills that it supports and credits legislators who co-sponsor them. Out of 181 bills, Kline co-sponsored only nine.
• Disabled American Veterans (DAV) shows that Rep. Kline has the worst voting record of Minnesota's House members on its bills. In 2004 and 2005, Rep. Kline received a 0 rating from DAV.
• In the 108th Congress, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) rated Rep. Kline and former Rep. Mark Kennedy as joint-last place for their votes on veterans’ issues. In the 109th Congress, Rep. Kline earned the lowest rating of Minnesota’s eight Congressional representatives. He appears headed the same direction in the 110thCongress.
  

John Kline has not just shortchanged veterans – he's also undercut our active-duty military. In the 110th Congress, John Kline has voted against:

• H.R. 3159, to mandate minimum rest and recuperation periods between deployments for members of the regular and reserve Armed Forces. The bill calls for U.S. soldiers to spend at least an equal amount of time between combat andhome. Historic practice for deployment cycles is two years away from combat for every year in combat. In other words, Rep. Kline voted against guaranteeing our soldiers even half the normal amount of time off between deployments.
• H.R. 2082, to override President Bush’s veto of the intelligence bill banning interrogation methods like waterboarding – a technique that former POW and Republican Sen. John McCain called “a terrible and odious practice [that] should never be condoned in the U.S.” McCain and former top military commanders point out that torture leads to less reliable intelligence and puts our own soldiers at risk.
  

Kline Thinks We Might Be Paying Too Much Attention to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. While suicides among veterans were approaching all-time highs, John Kline participated in a hearing held by the Military Personnel Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee on “the status of the implementation of the Army’s medical action plan and other services’ support for wounded service members.” In this meeting, Rep. Kline asked if “we let this emphasis on PTSD . . . pull us away from this orthopedic effort?” In response, Vice Admiral Adam Robinson, the Surgeon General of the Navy, reminded participants that PTSD was present during Vietnam and veterans who developed it “were not treated . . . and now we're seeing . . . 35 years later that that was an important thing.” (Audio available here.)

Kline Co-Sponsored the 21st Century GI Bill… and Then Voted Against It. In May, the House of Representatives approved an expansion of the GI Bill by a 256-166 margin. To address the skyrocketing costs of higher education,  the 21st Century GI Bill will give Iraq and Afghanistan veterans funds for four years of college, up to the level of the most expensive in-state public university, as well as a stipend for housing and books. Education benefits will kick in after three years of military service. GOP Rep. Jim Ramstad and all of Minnesota’s Democratic members of Congress voted for the bill – but bizarrely, John Kline voted against it… until it came up again, attached to Iraq War funding.

Kline Voted Against Veterans’ Health Care and Benefits. The vote was on an amendment to the Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs funding bill in 2005 that would have added $53 million to veterans’ health care and other  benefits, offset by a nine percent cut to the Base Closure and Realignment and Commission (BRAC). The amendment would have added $8 million for combat-related trauma care, $6 million for poly-trauma centers here at home, $9 million for VA medical and prosthetic research, $7 million for additional staff to process claims, and $23 million to help approximately 4,100 spouses of service members with children whose spouses died during the war. The amendment failed by one vote – 213-214. (House Budget Committee Democratic Leadership Document, “Medical Quality Democratic Amendment Final”; HR 2528, Vote #224, 5/26/2005)

This isn’t the only time Rep. Kline has voted against health benefits for our veterans. In 2005, he voted for final passage of the $2.6 trillion budget conference report that cut funding for veterans’ health care by $13.5 billion over five years. However, he still found room for $106 billion in tax cuts for the rich. (Caucus, “Summary and Analysis of FY 2006 Budget Resolution Conference Report”; HR 95, Vote #149, 4/28/2005)

Kline Opposed Offering Military Health Benefits to National Guard and Reserve Members. The proposal would have provided access to TRICARE to most members of the Guard and Reserve and their families for a low fee. The motion failed 211-218. (Leadership Document, “DOD Authorization Previous Question on Rule”; HR 1815, Vote #221, 5/25/2005)

Kline Voted Against Debt Assistance for Returning Guard and Reserve Members. His vote was against a motion on the 2005 bankruptcy reform bill to exempt members of the National Guard and Reserve from the means test in the bill if their debt resulted from active duty or was incurred within two years of returning from their service. Four out of 10 members of the Guard and Reserve forces lose income when they leave their civilian jobs for active duty. (Los Angeles Times, 4/15/05; Statement by Rep. Schakowsky, 109th Congressional Record, pg. H2074, 4/14/05; Vote #107)

Kline Voted Against Full Retirement and Disability Benefits for Veterans. U.S. policy is to reduce a military retiree’s pension by $1 for every dollar received in disability compensation. Veterans’ groups have for years tried to change this. The motion to fully fund disability and retirement benefits for our nation’s veterans failed 188-217. (Associated Press, 11/7/03; HR 1588, Vote #616, 11/7/2003)