The Homeless		Veterans
Schools		Families
The Elderly		The Unemployed

Bush may praise veterans, but when it comes to providing for their care and support, the rhetoric rings hollow – and his treatment of military families is even worse. The president’s 2004 budget proposal aims to cut $6.2 billion from various Veterans Affairs benefit programs, including support for nursing home care.

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Bush is not calling for an actual cut in funding for VA medical benefits in 2004, but he might as well. The 7.7 percent increase in medical funding included in his budget is offset by new enrollment fees for veterans earning more than $24,000 a year, and higher copayments for high-income vets. What's more, Bush’s budget assumes the VA will limit access to some services. In the end, the VA will see a real-dollar increase in funding that fails to match the rate of inflation and mandates a reducation in actual services. What's more, under three successive budgets, Bush has failed to earmark any federal funding to cover increasing costs related to long-term care for disabled veterans -- an issue he himself raised during a stump speech to the American Legion's annual convention in September, 2000. The president's 2004 budget actually proposes cutting the funding for veterans' nursing home care.

As far as military families are concerned, the president is proposing to cut nearly $1.5 billion in funding for military family housing, and $200 million from the Department of Education’s Impact Aid program, which funds schools near military bases.