Shinseki Fights off Veterans' Enemy Sen. James Webb, Defends Agent Orange Benefits

- Watching C-SPAN 3's telecast of the hearing on VA Disability Compensation, Presumptive Disability Decision-Making by the United States Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs is an illustration why no veteran or advocate in Virginia should consider voting for Sen. James Webb (Traitor-VA) -

This morning, while posturing as the earnest student of empirical investigation, Webb prefaced his hostile line of questioning of witness Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki saying Webb is concerned about protecting the "credibility of our [VA] programs."

I was hoping Shinseki would pull out a can of aerosol composed of dioxin [tetrachlorodibenzodioxin (TCDD)] and offer to spray it around the Committee room and see if anyone of the august senators had a presumptive problem with it.

Shinseki and the other witnesses responded politely and on-point, more than the Committee deserved.

"[This hearing] is also about the accuracy of the scientific process as it pertains to the Agent Orange and service in Vietnam. We have struggled with this now for more than 30 years," said Webb.

As if it to illustrate his point of concern about the recent Presumptive Agent Orange Disability rule, Webb asked his assistant to produce a chart (who is also a Marine Webb pointed out) showing that 431,699 additional Vietnam veterans would now be eligible for service-connected benefits because of the expanded Agent Orange VA rules.

You mean Vietnam Veteans will get diability benefits? Horrors.

This piece of wasted space named Sen. James Webb is up for reelection in 2012. Virginia should send him home to his fat military and Senate pensions.

Sen. James Webb and Congress Have Sixty Days to Stiff Veterans on Agent Orange Presumtives

In a victory for VA Secretary Shinseki, President Obama and veterans’ advocates, and Agent Orange victims, the new Agent Orange Illnesses’ Final Rules were published today in the Federal Registry.

Sen. James Webb (D-VA) will hold a September 2010 Veterans Affairs Hearing [on Disability Compensation: Presumptive Agent Orange Disability Decision-Making], presumably to apologize to a skeptical veterans community about Webb’s attempt to delay the implementation of the new rules and the expanded list of illnesses presumed to be caused by Agent Orange and other herbicides.

Other veteran advocates fear Webb and congressional allies may attempt to halt the implementation of the expanded rules, saying in effect: America can afford war, but not paying for its victims.

From the text of the published Agent Orange Rules, entitled "Diseases Associated With Exposure to Certain Herbicide Agents (Hairy Cell Leukemia and Other Chronic B-Cell Leukemias, Parkinson's Disease and Ischemic Heart Disease):

This final rule is a major rule and the implementation of this rule is subject to the provisions of the Congressional Review Act (CRA). The CRA provides for a 60-day waiting period before an agency may implement a major rule to allow Congress the opportunity to review the regulation. The impact of the CRA will require at least a 60-day delay between the issuance of the final regulation and when VA can begin paying benefits.

VA Publishes Final Regulation to Aid Veterans Exposed to Agent Orange Tuesday

- The final regulation follows Shinseki’s determination to expand the list of conditions for which service connection for Vietnam Veterans is presumed. VA is adding Parkinson’s disease and ischemic heart disease and expanding chronic lymphocytic leukemia to include all chronic B cell leukemias, such as hairy cell leukemia. Agent Orange Illnesses' Final Rules published Tuesday in the Federal Registry. -

Sen. James Webb (D-VA) will hold a September 2010 Veterans Affairs Hearing [on Disability Compensation: Presumptive Agent Orange Disability Decision-Making], presumably to apologize to a skeptical veterans community about Webb's attempt to delay the implementation of the new rules and the expanded list of illnesses presumed to be caused by Agent Orange and other herbicides.

From the VA:

VA Health Care and Benefits Provided for Many Vietnam Veterans

WASHINGTON – Veterans exposed to herbicides while serving in Vietnam and other areas will have an easier path to access quality health care and qualify for disability compensation under a final regulation that will be published on August 31, 2010 in the Federal Register by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The new rule expands the list of health problems VA will presume to be related to Agent Orange and other herbicide exposures to add two new conditions and expand one existing category of conditions.

“Last October, based on the requirements of the Agent Orange Act of 1991 and the Institute of Medicine’s 2008 Update on Agent Orange, I determined that the evidence provided was sufficient to award presumptions of service connection for these three additional diseases,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “It was the right decision, and the President and I are proud to finally provide this group of Veterans the care and benefits they have long deserved.”

The final regulation follows Shinseki’s determination to expand the list of conditions for which service connection for Vietnam Veterans is presumed. VA is adding Parkinson’s disease and ischemic heart disease and expanding chronic lymphocytic leukemia to include all chronic B cell leukemias, such as hairy cell leukemia.

In practical terms, Veterans who served in Vietnam during the war and who have a “presumed” illness don’t have to prove an association between their medical problems and their military service. By helping Veterans overcome evidentiary requirements that might otherwise present significant challenges, this “presumption” simplifies and speeds up the application process and ensure that Veterans receive the benefits they deserve.

The Secretary’s decision to add these presumptives is based on the latest evidence provided in a 2008 independent study by the Institute of Medicine concerning health problems caused by herbicides like Agent Orange.

Veterans who served in Vietnam anytime during the period beginning January 9, 1962, and ending on May 7, 1975, are presumed to have been exposed to herbicides.

More than 150,000 Veterans are expected to submit Agent Orange claims in the next 12 to 18 months, many of whom are potentially eligible for retroactive disability payments based on past claims. Additionally, VA will review approximately 90,000 previously denied claims by Vietnam Veterans for service connection for these conditions. All those awarded service-connection who are not currently eligible for enrollment into the VA healthcare system will become eligible.

This historic regulation is subject to provisions of the Congressional Review Act that require a 60-day Congressional review period before implementation. After the review period, VA can begin paying benefits for new claims and may award benefits retroactively for earlier periods. For new claims, VA may pay benefits retroactive to the effective date of the regulation or to one year before the date VA receives the application, whichever is later. For pending claims and claims that were previously denied, VA may pay benefits retroactive to the date it received the claim.

VA encourages Vietnam Veterans with these three diseases to submit their applications for access to VA health care and compensation now so the agency can begin development of their claims.

Individuals can go to a website at http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/AO/claimherbicide.htm to get an understanding of how to file a claim for presumptive conditions related to herbicide exposure, as well as what evidence is needed by VA to make a decision about disability compensation or survivors benefits.

Additional information about Agent Orange and VA’s services for Veterans exposed to the chemical is available at http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/.

The regulation is available on the Office of the Federal Register website at http://www.ofr.gov/.

CENTCOM Chief Adm. Fallon: Gen. Petraeus Is ‘An Ass-Kissing, Little Chickensh*t ... I Hate People Like That’

Via ThinkProgress:

During the Iraq war, the Central Command (CENTCOM) head — who leads U.S. operations in the entire Middle East region — and the Multinational Force Commander (MNF) have regularly testified together about the course of the war in Iraq.

Former-MNF Commander Gen. George Casey and his CENTCOM Commander Gen. John Abizaid constantly briefed Congress about the situation in Iraq and its regional effects.

In January, President Bush replaced Abizaid and Casey, who were “surge” skeptics, with Adm. William Fallon and Gen. David Petraeus. This week, Petraeus — first public hearings since taking on his new role — delivered his Iraq assessment to great media fanfare. But where was his boss, Admiral Fallon?

Inter-Press Service suggests animosity between the two might be one reason for Fallon’s absence:

Fallon told Petraeus [in March] that he considered him to be “an ass-kissing little chickensh*t” and added, “I hate people like that”, the sources say. That remark reportedly came after Petraeus began the meeting by making remarks that Fallon interpreted as trying to ingratiate himself with a superior.

The Washington Post reported this weekend on the internal military debate, described as “Armageddon,” occurring between Petraeus and Fallon because the two men have “profoundly different views of the U.S. role in Iraq.”

Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) announced today that he will be asking Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) to call Fallon to testify on “his views on the region.” Webb decried the lack of independence in Petraeus’s reporting, observing that there are “a lot of control factors going on that haven’t been visible” from the one-sided testimony of Petraeus:

WEBB: And there’s something of a kabuki going on right now. You know, the Petraeus report was brought in. On the one hand they’re calling it independent; on the other, General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker, from my understanding, gave a one-hour exclusive interview to Fox News after their first day of testimony. […]

So it was a very narrow and focused two days of hearings…we need to hear from people like Admiral Fallon and others to get a sense of how the region is in play. … He was, by many accounts, questioning keeping these troop levels this high. […]

So I’m going to be recommending to Senator Levin that we get Admiral Fallon in and get his views on the region.
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