ABikerSailor
Diamond Member
WASHINGTON - You can't accuse Sen. Jim DeMint of only talking the talk.
DeMint, among the most stringent anti-spending lawmakers, was the only senator Thursday to vote against a bill giving employers tax breaks for hiring military veterans.
The legislation, part of the jobs package President Barack Obama sent to Congress in September, passed the Senate by a 94-1 margin in a vote set on the eve of Veterans Day.
The measure, which the House is expected to pass soon, gives employers tax credits ranging from $2,400 to $9,600 for hiring unemployed vets and keeping them on the job for at least a year.
It also provides job counseling, training and placement assistance.
"We're pandering to different political groups with programs that have proven to be ineffective," DeMint said on the Senate floor. "All Americans deserve the same opportunity to get hired. I cannot support this tax credit because I do not believe the government should privilege one American over another when it comes to work."
Democrats were quick to criticize DeMint.
DeMint, a Greenville Republican, said he understands his vote could hurt him in a pro-military state with a large number of veterans.
"I'll probably get accused of not supporting veterans by the politicians pandering for their votes, but I'm not going to be intimidated into voting for something that may make sense politically but is inherently unfair and isn't going to work," DeMint said.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Seneca Republican and South Carolina's senior senator, voted for the legislation.
DeMint said the jobs measure isn't the right way to express gratitude to the nation's veterans.
Read more: Jim DeMint: Hiring initiative favoring veterans "inherently unfair" | islandpacket.com
Jim DeMint: Hiring initiative favoring veterans "inherently unfair" | islandpacket.com
The bill passed 94 to 1 and DeMint was the ONLY POLITICIAN to vote against it.
The question I have for the boards is, do you agree with DeMint and think that veterans should not be given preferential hiring via tax breaks for the business that hires them, or, do you think that DeMint is totally wrong, and because of what our veterans have sacrificed in the form of separation from family and deployments, actually deserve this bill?
Me personally? I think DeMint is an asshole, especially to vote as he did on the day before Veterans Day.