Issue Position: Supporting and Protecting our Soldiers

Issue Position

"The troops serving our country, overseas and here at home, deserve the very best. This includes the National Guard and Reserve troops - many of them from Massachusetts - currently serving on active duty. I will continue to work aggressively to safeguard the lives and well-being of these soldiers and their families."- Jim McGovern

Jim's Vision:

Jim McGovern will continue to work to make sure that our soldiers are the best trained, best equipped, best housed and best compensated in the world. They serve our nation well, and they deserve nothing less. Jim believes that we must do a much better job in providing the necessary resources for our troops' quality of life. Jim opposed the war in Iraq, and believes that our soldiers have been unnecessarily put at risk in that conflict.

Jim's Record:

* Jim McGovern successfully championed legislation to increase the military death gratuity to families of military personnel killed while on active duty, including families of Reserves and National Guard. On September 5, 2003, Congressman McGovern introduced H.R. 3019, to double the current military death gratuity benefit for military personnel killed in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere from $6,000 to $12,000, restore its former tax exempt status, and make these benefits retroactive to September 11, 2001. An identical bill passed the House by a vote of 413-to-0 on October 29, 2003, and was signed into law by President Bush on November 11, 2003.

* Congressman McGovern has forcefully pressed Pentagon officials for improved and increased communication and other support for Massachusetts families of active duty military personnel, especially Reserves and National Guard, especially for those whose deployment in Iraq have been extended one or more times. On May 11, 2003, Congressman McGovern and Congresswoman DeLauro (D-New Haven, CT) coordinated a bipartisan letter from Members representing Massachusetts, Maine and Connecticut to General Bruce Zukauskas, Deputy Commander of the 94th Regional Readiness Command at Fort Devens, MA, regarding inadequate communication to the families of military personnel serving in Iraq in the units under his charge. Additionally, both through casework and other direct communications with Department of Defense officials, Congressman McGovern has advocated for greater responsiveness to the needs of families whose loved ones are serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan, the Philippines and elsewhere) and Operation Noble Eagle (defense of the homeland).

* Congressman McGovern has championed increased funding for U.S. military pay rates and quality of life. Congressman McGovern firmly believes that the United States cannot support the best modern military if we fail to provide adequate pay and modern operations and training facilities. Congressman McGovern has consistently supported increasing the pay rates of U.S. military personnel, especially for enlisted personnel and non-commissioned officers. He is a strong advocate for helping to equalize the pay or relieve the financial burdens for those members of the Reserve and National Guard serving lengthy and extended deployments who face significant discrepancies between their civilian and military pay. He is among the few who call for and vote for increased funding for military construction, including family housing and military operations and training facilities, rejecting the current inadequate budgets. He has fought for better health care and benefits, including for National Guard and Reserve, as well as for mental health services available in active combat theaters and at home bases for military personnel serving in or returning from active duty combat.

* Congressman McGovern has aggressively pressed Pentagon officials and his Congressional colleagues for improved procurement and delivery of personal body armor and reinforced armored vehicles for U.S. troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, including for Reserve and National Guard personnel. Congressman McGovern has pressed Pentagon and Congressional committee leaders to increase the number of modern armored high-mobility vehicles and to increase the number of existing vehicles receiving reinforced armor. He has pressed Pentagon officials and Congressional leaders to streamline the delivery of the most modern personal body armor and protection and called on the Pentagon to reimburse families who have purchased such body armor for individuals serving in active combat theaters who lacked such protection.

* Congressman McGovern has pressed for the prosecution of any persons who have mistreated or tortured U.S. prisoners of war or civilians held captive by armed actors, as well as for the payment of reparations to such victims or their surviving families. Congressman McGovern has been especially aggressive in his advocacy for fair treatment and compensation to U.S. POWs, including veterans of the first Persian Gulf War, the Korean conflict, and men and women held captive in the Philippines during World War II.

* Congressman McGovern has been a leader n the House in the international movement to ban anti-personnel landmines (APLs). APLs caused 33% of American casualties in Vietnam and 34% in the first Persian Gulf War. They caused over 300 casualties among American and international peacekeepers in Bosnia, and APLs leftover from former wars are among the threats to U.S. military personnel and civilian humanitarian workers in Afghanistan. Jim introduced legislation in the 105th, 106th and 107th Congresses for the US to join the Landmine Ban Treaty. He is a strong supporter of relief for victims and survivors of landmines, including the Landmine Survivors Network and is a strong supporter of US leadership on and funding for landmine clearance programs and training.

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