He hate me…

…and you, if you served your country in uniform...

The Bush administration, already accused by veterans groups of seeking inadequate funds for health care next year, acknowledged yesterday that it is short $1 billion for covering current needs at the Department of Veterans Affairs this year.

The disclosure of the shortfall angered Senate Republicans who have been voting down Democratic proposals to boost VA programs at significant political cost. Their votes have brought the wrath of the American Legion, the Paralyzed Veterans of America and other organizations down on the GOP.

Yep, it didn't have to be that way. Patty Murray, senior Senator from the Upper Left, offered up an amendment that would have added $1.9 billion to the VA budget, to fill the billion dollar hole the VA now admits exists for existing services and to begin to meet the increased demand caused by George Bush's elective war. But the Administration fought it and 54 Republican Senators killed it, and here we are.

Steve Robertson of the American Legion says their "policies are inconsistent with a nation at war." True enough.

They're totally consistent, though, with a President who hates soldiers and veterans.