The Bush White House has declared that the 3.5% pay raise for the troops proposed by Democrats as being "unnecessary" but requested the legislature to make the President's tax cuts for the rich permanent, actions that have earned the administration the wrath of unions.
Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton, (D-NY) and John Kerry, (D-Mass), had requested 3.5 percent pay increase for 2008, but the Bush administration opposes any increase above 3 percent.
"The additional 0.5 percent increase above the President’s proposed 3.0 percent across-the-board pay increase is unnecessary," President's Office of Budget and Management stated. "When combined with the overall military benefit package, the President’s proposal provides a good quality of life for servicemembers and their families."
"For President Bush to begrudge our troops a pay raise of (one-half) percentage point is outrageous, appalling, and just unacceptable," said John Bruhns, an Iraq veteran and spokesman for VoteVets.org. At a time when Army deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan have been extended from a year to 15 months, he said more compensation is badly needed.
The Administration strongly opposes an additional $100,000 death benefit for surviving family members of civilian employees who died supporting US forces in a contingency operation.
Meanwhile, the administration is at loggerheads with the Democrats over Bush's plans to make tax cuts permanent.
“The new Democratic majorities are standing by their misguided plans for tax hikes and big spending increases," OMB Director Rob Portman said. "Tax and spend is no way to balance the budget. It jeopardizes continued economic growth and job creation."
Senator Kerry criticized the administration for lobbying Congress for more tax cuts while claiming the country can't afford even a few extra dollars for service members putting their lives at grave risk every day.
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