Free Republic

KWTX) - Federal agents on Thursday raided three churches near military installations across the Southern U.S., including the Assembly of Prayer Christian Church in Killeen. “I can confirm the FBI was executing court authorized law enforcement activity today in the vicinity of the intersection of Massey St. and E. Rancier Ave., in Killeen, Texas. No additional information will be released at this time,” FBI Special Agent Carmen Portillo said in an emailed statement to KWTX.

Americans want to honor the veterans and service members who sacrifice so much to defend our freedom. That’s why we have holidays like Memorial Day. Yet members of our military deserve more than speeches and parades. They deserve parental choice in education. “[W]hile our service members fight for our freedoms abroad, too many military families are denied education freedom at home,” according to former deputy U.S. Secretary of Education Mitchell Zais. And he should know: Zais served in the U.S. Army for 31 years and retired as a brigadier general. The lack of parental choice in education hits military families...

(CNN)In honor of Veterans Day, congressional Democrats reintroduced legislation Thursday that would provide GI Bill benefits to descendants of Black World War II veterans. The GI Bill Restoration Act was introduced in the House by Majority Whip Jim Clyburn of South Carolina and Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts. Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia is set to introduce the legislation in the Senate, according to a news release on Clyburn's website. ...If passed, the bill would extend to descendants and surviving spouses of Black WWII veterans access to the VA Loan Guaranty Program, which provides assistance for buying and...

Two months after the Pentagon began requiring all troops to get the coronavirus vaccine or face dismissal, the vast majority have now had shots, in part because none received a religious exemption, military officials said. https://t.co/3zpPg5hpG6 — NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) November 4, 2021 Troops who refuse the coronavirus vaccine won’t see any extra protections or leniency in how their dismissals are handled, Defense and Veterans Affairs officials confirmed Wednesday. Instead, decisions on whether to give those individuals other-than-honorable discharges — potentially blocking them from a host of veterans benefits — will be left to local commanders, and their cases won’t...

The GI Bill provides educational assistance to service members, veterans and their dependents. Rob Bannon of Jacksonville, Florida, is among the veterans who have used the government benefit to better their lives. Bannon runs a small business coaching and training golfers, both professionals and beginners.

“Imagine what it would do for our country and those who live here if we were to take the ethos behind the original G.I. Bill and apply it to everybody — canceling all student debt and making public colleges, universities, and vocational schools tuition-free,” she tweeted Thursday

The Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer William ‘Bill’ Mulder (Ret.) Transition Improvement Act of 2018, introduced by Republican Texas Rep. Jodey Arrington, contains a clause that would cut millions of dollars in funding for veteran jobs in aviation. The bill, which is meant to help veterans transition into civilian careers, contains a subsection that caps funds available to veterans who receive flight training at the same level as a private undergraduate degree. To fly on a passenger commercial airline, pilots need at least 1,500 hours of flight time and must pass a written examination, according to the Bureau of Labor...

Legislation that would cut by half the Post-9/11 GI Bill housing allowance payments transferrable to children of troops is set for a vote Tuesday in the U.S. House of Representatives. The language, part of the Veterans Employment, Education and Healthcare Act, only cuts the payment for children of service members using the transferred funding.

ST. LOUIS (AP) No medical or mental health care. No subsidized college or work training. For many who leave the U.S. military with less-than-honorable discharges, including thousands who suffered injuries and anguish in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, standard veterans benefits are off limits. The discharge serves as a scarlet letter of dishonor, and the effects can be severe: Ex-military members with mental health problems or post-traumatic stress disorder can't turn to Veterans Affairs hospitals or clinics; those who want to go to college aren't eligible for the GI Bill; the jobless get no assistance for career training; the homeless are...

“I wrote a story about it.” It is a phrase Jack Beritzhoff says a lot. And when you consider the San Rafael resident, and former Merchant Mariner, is about to celebrate his 97th birthday, that adds up to a lot of stories. In fact, Beritzhoff compiled many of his favorite one into a book he published in 2012: Sail Away, Journeys Of A Merchant Seaman. Still, there is one story he is most eager to share these days, about an oversight of history he would like to see corrected. “I think it’s an injustice,” said Beritzhoff. Beritzhoff is referring to...

Iraq War veteran David Rodriguez steps into a softly lit classroom at the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco, crosses his legs and sits on a pillow in front of an altar decorated with a rope, a model of a penis and a statue of a Hindu god. Rodriguez, a retired Navy lieutenant commander who led an engineering battalion that dismantled roadside bombs, is here for a class on “sexual bodywork.” When instruction begins, he will join his classmates in practicing different forms of masturbation. “They do vulva massage and penis massage and anal massage,” said...

For those not familiar with the GI Bill – the program which provides numerous benefits for our veterans when they complete their terms of service – it can be a pretty good deal. It’s undergone several changes over the years (having first evolved in the 40s and 50s) but it’s helped a lot of veterans, including me. One of the most commonly used features aside from home mortgage programs is the education benefit. Veterans can go to school and have significant portions of their tuition covered, allowing for an easier transition to civilian life.Some of the schools which a...

The president’s plan to make community college free for everyone is the best news for the middle class in a long time. President Obama this month gave the best State of the Union address of his presidency but it was largely written in disappearing ink. Like the vast majority of presidential speeches, little of it lingers. But one proposal in the speech could prove historic. While Obama’s $60 billion plan for two free years of community college is dead-on-arrival in the Republican Congress, it is very much alive in American politics, where progressives now have an aspirational, easy-to-understand issue to...

In 1968 when I enlisted, my enlistment contract guaranteed me that for the rest of my life I could be seen at any VA hospital or clinic for free for the rest of my life on a tier system. 1st. To be seen were service connected disabilities. 2nd to be seen were active duty personnel and their families. 3rd. And last to be seen were all other veterans. You could walk-in and wait and you may have to wait all day but you would be seen by a doctor. All medications were free at any veterans hospital or clinic, no...

My name is (Deleted) and I am a Veteran of the U.S. Army. I was deployed in efforts of Operation Iraqi Freedom I (2003). I am contacting you because I am concerned over the way the GiBill standard of living payments are being handled by the Veterans Administration and how it is close to impossible for a Veteran to contact the VA over the phone to handle this matter or others. I am a student at (Deleted) University where the year is broken down into 2 sessions that are 8 weeks long that make up one semester. I don’t know...

First, the White House spoke out against NBC News and its editing of Richard Engel's interview with President George Bush. And, today, the White House takes on the New York Times editorial page for its editorial, "Mr. Bush and the GI Bill." From the White House statement: Once again, the New York Times Editorial Board doesn't let the facts get in the way of expressing its vitriolic opinions - no matter how misleading they may be. In today's editorial, "Mr. Bush and the GI Bill", the New York Times irresponsibly distorts President Bush's strong commitment to strengthening and expanding support...

WASHINGTON — Veterans trying to get an education under the new GI bill face delayed checks, erroneous payments and uncertainty about what their actual benefits are, officials told a congressional committee Wednesday. Testifying before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Department of Veterans Affairs officials acknowledged problems that have characterized the initial eight months of the overhaul of the original Montgomery GI Bill. Glitches were expected in the beginning, but they need to be fixed, officials said. "A fellow veteran ate canned beans and sardines three meals a day for an entire semester trying to scrape up gas money for his...

A program enacted in August 2009 promised military veterans attending college increased educational benefits for their time served, but, seven months later, some students at the University of Colorado have seen little or none of that money. At least 231 students at CU rely on funding from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as part of the post-9/11 G.I. Bill, which pays a portion of tuition, fees, books and living expenses for students who served at least 90 days of active service since Sept. 11, 2001. The bill nearly doubled the benefits to military and veteran students nationwide, but CU...

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 3, 2009) — I am proud to report that as of May 1, veterans may begin applying for the Post-9/11 GI Bill. During the 110th Congress, the Congress passed and President Bush signed into law the Post-9/11 GI Bill, a legislative package that includes a landmark expansion of the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, most commonly referred to as the “GI Bill.” This act provides for the single largest investment in college financial aid since the GI Bill of 1944 by fully restoring four-year college scholarships for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Men and women in uniform who...

Emergency Payments for Veterans Awaiting VA Educational Benefits Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki has authorized advance payments up to $3,000 for Veterans who have applied for VA educational benefits and who have not yet received their monthly education payments. If you are a Veteran who has applied for one of VA’s education programs and have not yet received your monthly benefit payment for the Fall 2009 term, you can submit a request for an advance payment on this website. Advance payments will be issued by the U. S. Treasury within 3 workdays (Monday through Friday) following submission of...