Max Cleland: “I find it the height of irony in the midst of our discussion on potential war with Iraq and potential use of force and…”

“I find it the height of irony in the midst of our discussion on potential war with Iraq and potential use of force and committing young Americans into harm's way--and I indicated my support yesterday for the bipartisan resolution that would authorize the use of force to go after weapons of mass destruction in Iraq--I find it ironic in the midst of this debate about whether to commit American forces to a national objective somewhere in the world, that in the Washington Post yesterday an article was entitled ``New Pension Benefits Imperil Defense Bill. In Cost-Conscious Move, Bush Vows to Veto Entire Budget if Item Isn't Eliminated.'' The message in the article is disturbing to me because the item referred to is something called concurrent receipt. I might say currently under law there is an untenable situation where, if someone has served 20 years in the American military and additionally gets wounded in that service, they cannot draw their retirement which they have earned and their disability compensation which they are entitled to, concurrently.”