Blog Post

IAVA Daily News Brief 10.12.12
Posted by Jacob Worrell on October 12 2012

Here are some of today's top stories and happenings that IAVA is tracking. Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking? Follow us on Twitter @IAVA and click here to get the News Brief delivered to your inbox every morning.

MUST READS

1) Biden, Ryan argue over removing ‘surge’ of troops

In a sparring contest last night between Vice President Joe Biden and Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Rep. Paul Ryan, the timetable of withdrawal from Afghanistan was brought up. The Hill reports Biden said the U.S. military will end its mission in 2014, and that the Afghan army would have to take control of their security by that date. Ryan said that he and Mitt Romney agreed with the date to withdraw U.S. forces in 2014, though he said that it would depend on the conditions there, too.

2) Plumey, Veteran of Three Wars, Dies at 92

Basil L. Plumley, who fought three wars and whose exploits as an Army infantryman were portrayed in a book and the movie “We Were Soldiers,” has died at 92. Plumey, who enlisted in the Army in 1942, fought in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam. He spent 32 years in uniform.

3) Veteran volunteers enlist to fight unemployment

The Veteran Leadership Corps, a new program extended out of the Americorps, will place volunteers in 20 communities nationwide  to connect veterans and their spouses with resources to help them reintegrate into civilian life. In addition to employment, the Community Blueprint seeks to connect veterans with housing, education and healthcare.

AFGHANISTAN

• Seven Royal Marines were arrested yesterday for suspicion of murder involving an engagement with an insurgent in 2011. No civilians were involved. 

IRAQ

• Last month’s jailbreak in Tikrit was planned by members of Iraq’s branch of Al Qaeda, when dozens of prisoners, many of them convicted members of al Qaeda on death row, fought their way out of the jail, killing 16 members of the security forces in ensuing clashes. In a statement, Al Qaeda said they planned the escape by sending arms and detonated a car bomb to allow prisoners to flee.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

• A pretrial hearing for Staff Sergeant Bales has been set for Nov. 5. Bales will appear at a Joint Base Lewis-McChord courtroom while villagers are expected to testify at Kandahar Air Field in southern Afghanistan.
• Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said the United States has the capacity to trace cyberattacks and has developed effective operations to counter threats to the U.S.’s interests in cyberspace.
• Some female Marines have learned there is zero tolerance for women perceived to be “asking for it.”
• Watch a video where the hundreds of New Zealand troops perform a Maori funeral Haka at the Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch.

THE NEW GREATEST GENERATION

• Governor Perry announced a new hiring initiative through a new program at the Texas Workforce Commission and Texas Medical Center called Hiring Red, White & You! to host job fairs across the state on Nov. 15.
• Veterans are receiving help for their posttraumatic stress disorder from horses. Ozark Center has partnered with Magic Moments Riding Therapy and the Wounded Warrior Project to offer horse therapy to Alexander and other veterans.
• The Navy will have it’s 237th birthday on Saturday.
• A Miami federal judge ruled in favor of a veteran who says shoddy hygiene practices at a Veterans Administration hospital caused his hepatitis infection. Damages will be settled later.
• Sesame Street will air an episode today and November 30th about Brandeis, who sings about his dream job of being a Service Dog.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

• The State Department sent Laurence Pope to be the new chargé d'affairs in Libya following the death of Amb. Chris Stevens. Pope arrived in Tripoli today, the State Department announced.
• The Daily Show talks about down-ticket congressional races, including veterans Tammy Duckworth and Allen West.

A wide-range of views, positions, and publications are represented in these articles. These views, positions and publications are not endorsed by nor do they necessarily represent the views of IAVA.

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