David Obey: “it would be so nice if the force of our rhetoric is matched by the force of our deeds. That certainly is not the case…”

“it would be so nice if the force of our rhetoric is matched by the force of our deeds. That certainly is not the case with this bill. Just a few months ago this House passed this resolution and it said, among other things, ``Resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring, that the Congress express the unequivocal support and appreciation of the Nation to the members of the United States Armed Forces serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom who are carrying out their missions with excellence, patriotism and bravery and also to their families.'' Well, the sad news, unfortunately, is that the check is not in the mail. We have given them a resolution but we are short-sheeting them in terms of things that military families need in order to make their life better. I do not understand why we are doing that. This bill shows the House's ``support and appreciation'' by providing $1.5 billion less than we appropriated last year to provide the military with decent housing and work places. The bill also thanks the military supposedly by cutting the President's own request for the Pentagon by $180 million. This is for hangers, offices, fitness centers and teaching facilities that even OMB and the administration said the military needed. But this bill cuts them out. Many Members of this House have seen the problems for themselves. The Pentagon itself rates the readiness of most military facilities as marginal or worse.”