Has he spoken specifically on the military with regard to whether it is strong enough today, whether he would make cutbacks, and who he would look to for advice as to how it should be maintained? Would appreciate a reliable source, including Dr. Paul himself. This is a legitimate question to which he should give answer.
While I can’t answer your question specifically, the following gives you some idea of his stand on the military.
by Ron Paul, Dr. October 21, 2002
With thousands of our troops now deployed in Afghanistan, and thousands more probably headed to Iraq, it is important to remember the sacrifices made by our military families. Congress should do everything possible to make sure our soldiers and our veterans receive adequate pay, housing, health care, tax relief, and disability benefits.
I recently cosponsored legislation that would exempt members of America’s armed forces from income taxes. This legislation, introduced by my colleague John Culberson, would extend the existing tax exemption for armed forces serving in combat zones to the entire active duty military. This would eliminate withholding and income tax filing for the nation’s soldiers, allowing them to keep their entire paychecks.
The men and women of our nation’s armed forces work for incredibly low pay, and they should not have that pay reduced even further by federal taxes. Many military families live on less than $20,000 annually, and some have been forced to accept welfare just to provide basic food and shelter for their children. Our nation should never permit its armed forces to live in poverty. A full-time active duty soldier should always be able to house, feed, and clothe his or her family. This legislation would provide every American servicemember with an immediate pay raise without additional federal spending.
I also recently voted to support legislation that would make it easier for military families to qualify for the homeowner’s tax exemption when selling a house. Current tax rules require a homeowner to live in a residence for two continuous years to qualify for the exemption, but servicemembers tend to transfer between bases frequently. Congress voted overwhelmingly to change the two-year requirement for our armed forces, and hopefully the bill will become law before the end of the year.
Similarly, Congress recently passed a resolution calling for a change in veteran’s disability payments. Currently, retired soldiers may only receive either their military pension or military disability benefits- not both. Nonmilitary government retirees and private sector employees, however, do receive both standard pensions and disability pay. This is very unfair to military retirees, who deserve pay for both their career work and the separate incident that caused their disability. Last week’s vote moves us closer to ending this injustice.
Finally, Congress should end the silence and formally address Gulf War Syndrome, which has had a devastating impact on thousand of veterans who served in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. As a medical doctor, I believe the evidence behind the existence of the syndrome is now conclusive. The syndrome likely represents several different maladies caused by exposure to conditions specific to the Gulf region at that time. We should be providing medical treatment to our sick Gulf War veterans, not insulting them by insisting that “it’s all in their heads.” Congress should lead the way and craft legislation that requires VA hospitals to recognize and treat Gulf War Syndrome like any other illness. It’s the least we can do for the soldiers who risked their lives in the Gulf.
http://www.ronpaul2008.com/articles/234/legislation-for-our-military-families-and-veterans/
I'm sure Ron Paul has made plenty of comments you wish to ignore.
Fester Chugabrew,
Unless he brings some interest to the threads, I tend to ignore him. Same old cut and paste name calling since day one. The silliness turns people off but at the same time draws people to support Ron Paul.
29K new donors in one week and growing. What other candidate is getting everyday americans in this number to support a candidate?
Lormand has yet to support a candidate so, like many who are undecided, they just tend to buzz around Ron Paul threads and “type tough”.
Watch out Fester, after a couple of back and forth posts, he will threaten to have you kicked off.
I tend to ignore him like many others do.