Two Senators Back Administration’s Anti-Retiree Budget

Senators Larry Craig, R-Idaho, chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., chairman of the Senate Armed Services personnel subcommittee, have endorsed the Bush administration’s fiscal 2007 budget that would raise Tricare enrollment fees and co-payments for military retirees under age 65 and raise prescription co-payments for certain veterans (previous item). Graham said that, although the nation owes veterans and retirees “a lot,” they should continue to sacrifice by paying the huge increases the administration wants. He added that, although he wasn’t budging on the increases, he was willing to consider shifting retiree health care administration from the Defense Department to the Department of Veterans Affairs so that health dollars would not compete with military hardware and personnel costs. He said that, although the idea is controversial, he was throwing it “out there” to wake everybody up.