Frank Lautenberg: “That speaks to the leadership we have. We see a headline that says, ``War Funds Dwindling, GAO Warns.'' That is…”

“That speaks to the leadership we have. We see a headline that says, ``War Funds Dwindling, GAO Warns.'' That is terrible. We have spent a ton of money. One thing all of us can agree upon, whether Democrat or Republican, is that we want our troops protected. We want them to be able to conduct their responsibilities in Iraq and Afghanistan with the best equipment they can get. Frankly, I have been looking for some time now at a way to compensate these service people for the 90 days of extended term that has been demanded by this administration. I want to get a $2,000-a-month extra stipend to help them weather the financial storm. The emotional, family storm is terribly painful. We see an unusual number of suicides--far greater than we have seen in past wars--because of the emotional distress. It is overpowering. Soldiers are away from their families for a year. They are often people with little children. These are people, largely in the Reserve Corps, who are often young, have young families, and are trying to take care of their family and financial needs at the same time--paying the mortgage payments, paying for the normal sustenance of life. That could not get heard here. It wasn't allowed to be brought up. There are other things that I consider detrimental to the purported support we want to give our troops. I agree all of us in this body want to do what we can for those who are serving so dutifully and courageously.”