Thursday, September 11, 2008

Freeman Fails to Protect Veterans

"Freeman, who said he served in the Guard during Desert Storm, said he wants to continue the work Birdsong started to help veterans and the military." (Branson, Freeman to Square Off for Seat in State House, Macon Telegraph, July 14, 2004)

So much for that campaign promise. In July of 2004, you would've thought Rep. Allen Freeman (R-Macon) would be the best friend veterans ever had. Once elected, he has been extremely ineffective and eeriely quiet when it comes to advocating for the veterans living at the soon-to-be-closed Georgia War Veteran's Home. Freeman is vice chair of the Defense and Veterans' Affairs Committee-a powerful position when you're also in the majority party. So, why has he not been able to to protect the Georgia War Veteran's Home? I saw the press release from Sen. Robert Brown expressing outrage at the closing, but where was Rep. Freeman's voice? Is this not important to him, or is he not important to his Republican leadership in Atlanta?

It speaks volumes about your effectiveness and the level of respect you have earned from your own leadership if you are in the majority party, in leadership in a relevent committee and can't persuade your leadership to keep veterans from becoming homeless on your watch.

Freeman, who sometimes pays his Officer's Club dues at Robins Air Force Base out of his campaign account, likes to tout his military service, but in the battle to protect the War Veteran's Home, he's been AWOL.

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2 comments:

Shark Girl said...

I've given up on politics. I've learned the hard way Robins Air Force Base doesn't care who is in office, as long as whoever it is will keep quiet about the "good ole boy network".

I can name some Senators, Congressman and a Governor who turned a blind eye to bribery, bid rigging, threats and retaliation out at Robins AFB.

Follow the money. I did. I learned why the politicians don't care. The game is, don't let that base get shut down, even if corruption has to be ignored.

As for Freeman, do you really think anyone that can do anything about it cares that he pays his dues with campaign money?

Vic said...

On Foxfiles Thursday night, Peake was singing Freeman's praises over what is going on at the Georgia War Veterans Home. Peake said the State Veterans Budget has been cut to $25 million and that $2.5 million was being used to take care of 80 veterans, which he felt was a disproportionate amount to spend on just 80 veteran patriots.

That's about $30,000 per Veteran, per year. Maybe if Peake studies how the State Prison System keeps their costs low, he can suggest some economies of scale to put the elderly War Veterans on.

According to Peake, after the Unpatriotic heat got on Freeman, he rushed down to Milledgeville and had a bunch of our eldlerly Patriotic Veterans shipped off to nursing homes. Peake was kinda vague on details but was disproportionately praising Freeman.

Then Peake said "his" passion was drilling for oil in Alaska. I tried to call Foxfiles and ask him how his responsibilites on the State Legislature Banking Committee were going with all the recent bank failures and with the FDIC saying that possibly 200 more banks can fail. But the line was tied up with angry War Veterans and active duty service persons who feared a similar fate if they decided to retire in Georgia under a Republican administration.

I guess that's why the Veterans just endorsed DINO Ranger Jim Marshall over RINO General Rick Goddard.

other than that, everything is swell, vote republican.