Blog post

IAVA Daily Brief 1.04.10
Posted by Terrell Frazier on December 23 2009

 Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking?  Follow us on Twitter @IAVAPressRoom or subscribe to receive the brief in your inbox each morning at www.iava.org/dailynewsbrief.

MUST READS

1) ’60 Minutes’ on VA: Shortcomings frustrating Veterans

On Sunday night, 60 Minutes featured significant shortcomings within the Department of Veterans Affairs. According to the program, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the crippling recession, have significantly increased the claims handled by the VA, slowing it and frustrating many veterans.  

2) Army historians document early missteps in Afghanistan

A new unpublished Army history of the war in Afghanistan concludes that early missteps are the culprit for the latest setbacks. The report found that the two major issues were the Pentagon’s insistence on maintaining a “small footprint” and the war in Iraq drew away resources.

3) Odierno: Iraq drawdown on track

The nearly two-month delay in holding Iraq’s nationwide elections will not keep American combat troops from leaving the country as scheduled by the end of August, the top U.S. commander in Iraq Gen. Ray Odierno told The Associated Press. The remaining 50,000 U.S. forces after the August deadline will be doing non-combat operations such as training.

AFGHANISTAN

The Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a base in eastern Afghanistan that killed eight American civilians and one Afghan, the worst loss of life for the U.S. in the country since October. The attack exposed significant vulnerabilities to U.S. bases in Afghanistan.

American military fatalities in Afghanistan doubled to 318 in 2009 compared with the previous year, and U.S. officials and analysts acknowledge that the new year is likely to prove even more lethal.

As the U.S. prepares to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, the illegal drug trade is continuing to complicate U.S. force’s efforts to win over the population.

IRAQ

A ceremony formally marked the end of the multinational coalition serving alongside the U.S. in Iraq. The ceremony came as December ended without an American combat death, the first time since the start of the conflict.

An Iraqi insurgent group claimed responsibility Sunday for a double bombing Dec. 30 that killed 24 people and severely injured a provincial governor.

A British hostage held for 2 1/2 years by a militant Iraqi Shiite Muslim group was freed Wednesday in a move his family hailed as "the best Christmas present ever."

MILITARY AFFAIRS
The Defense Department could expand its tracking sexual assault cases beyond servicemembers. New recommendations from an inspector general concluded that the Pentagon should include assaults of civilians and contractors in its statistics.

A proposed bill in South Carolina would extend special designations to enhance existing state and federal laws that protect servicemembers from verbal and physical threats. 

INSIDE WASHINGTON

The fate of the 2011 military pay raise may rest on how much weight lawmakers give to a claim by a nonpartisan congressional office that a purported that there is no gap in military pay and the rising cost of things like food and housing. 

  Share:
 del.icio.us  digg  reddit  facebook  newsvine myspace twitter