Fix GI Bill’s ‘blind spot’

By The Gazette Editorial Board

Dave Loebsack is trying to eliminate the “blind spot” in the new GI Bill's education benefits. Iowa's 2nd District congressman is on the right track.

At issue is how National Guardsmen are treated in the bill. The legislation does give National Guard members who served at least 90 days on active duty since Sept. 11, 2001, some education money for college tuition, housing stipends, books and supplies. The amount is linked to length of service.

However, only Guard members called for certain missions, generally combat duties overseas, are eligible. Those who serve in national security missions such as natural disasters, protecting airports during emergencies or guarding dangerous places along the U.S.-Mexico border are not.

Loebsack says that's wrong, and we agree. Everyone who signs up for duty with the National Guard is potentially available for hazardous duty. Whether that duty happens overseas or at home shouldn't affect eligibility for GI Bill benefits. Guard members are trained to protect and defend our interests everywhere.

The GI Bill's incentives also help ensure stability in our all-volunteer military. As the number of personnel in regular U.S. military branches has dropped, from just over 2 million in 1990 to about 1.4 million today, the National Guard has seen its role expanding.

There have been more frequent call-ups for humanitarian and military crises, including Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.

More than 50,000 Guard

members provided security at home and fought terrorism abroad after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The Guard deployed a similar number in response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster in 2005. Hundreds among their ranks were on hand in Cedar Rapids after the epic 2008 flood catastrophe. And now members are helping combat the Gulf of Mexico oil spill catastrophe.

The new GI Bill is “ ... the best package of benefits since the troops returned from World War II,” John Goheen, spokesman for the National Guard Association, told a reporter for our Capitol News Connection service. “But the bad news is there's a blind spot.”

The good news is that Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Alaska, head of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, is supporting Loebsack's legislation.

One of the federal government's basic obligations is to provide for the national defense. Those who serve must be treated fairly for their service and sacrifice.

A broader application of GI Bill benefits not only is deserving, it would help raise the skills and work careers for thousands of Americans who have demonstrated their commitment to this nation's security and freedom.