Remembering and Prioritizing
The Friday before Memorial Day…
Employees gearing up for a long weekend, with plans for parades, cook-outs and events which commemorate the intent of the holiday.
Congress is gearing up for a recess week.
For those who want the reminder: Memorial Day began as “Decoration Day” shortly after the end of the Civil War. The intent is to remember and honor military veterans who died in service.
This isn’t a preachy post about how people spend their Memorial Day weekend. You can honor and respect our nation’s brave veterans while eating corn on the cob.
It is more about the phrase “Congress is gearing up for a recess week.”
This weekend, elected officials return to their districts from the beltway for parade participation. They will no doubt take advantage of the opportunity to herald their work in supporting our nation’s veterans. Then, they can have an extended stay in the district due to the recess week.
When they return to the important work of passing a damn budget (perhaps even for a full fiscal year instead of the hot trend of shortcut continuing resolutions) they have the opportunity to match their actions to their re-election rhetoric. How? Simple. Ensure the budget allocates adequate resources for military veterans and their families to receive the benefits they have earned. And ensure the budget has teeth regarding enforcement in how those benefits are administered.
There are many competing budgetary priorities. Military veterans deserve to be at the top.