Bush Vetoes Health and Education Bill, Signs Huge Pentagon Funding Increase

Posted by Paddy , Brave New Films at 12:00 PM on November 13, 2007.

This post, written by Paddy, originally appeared on Cliff Schecter's Brave New Films Blog

WASHINGTON - President Bush on Tuesday vetoed a spending measure for health and education programs prized by congressional Democrats. He also signed a big increase in the Pentagon's non-war budget.

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More than any other spending bill, the $606 billion education and health measure defines the differences between Bush and majority Democrats. The House fell three votes short of winning a veto-proof margin as it sent the measure to Bush.

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The $471 billion defense budget gives the Pentagon a 9 percent, $40 billion budget increase. The measure only funds core department operations, omitting Bush's $196 billion request for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, except for an almost $12 billion infusion for new troop vehicles that are resistant to roadside bombs.

The economic costs to the United States of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan so far total approximately $1.5 trillion, according to a new study by congressional Democrats that estimates the conflicts' "hidden costs"-- including higher oil prices, the expense of treating wounded veterans and interest payments on the money borrowed to pay for the wars.

Tagged as: bush, education, pentagon, health care, military spending, healthandwellness

Paddy is a regular contributor to Cliff Schecter.com.