Bush Tells Sick Veterans: "Be Flexible"

Kerry cancelled a trip to New Mexico to go back to DC and vote for a Veteran's Health Care bill which Bush opposes. Apparently, Bush thinks the quality of health care of all those folks the US asks to go oversees to have metal casings explode inside their vital organs -- a duty he saw fit to miss out on during his opportunity -- is good enough, and if a Veteran has got money jangling in his pocket then, hey, shouldn't they pay for their healthcare themselves?

"The administration believes it is best for veterans to maintain flexibility," said Bush campaign spokesman Steve Schmidt. "The mandatory approach is an inflexible one and the rigidity does not best serve veterans."

That's *two* boneheaded quotes in a day for Steve Schmidt (see below).

It is idiocy to say to Veterans anything but: The sacrifices you made in serving the United States are highly valued, the country is grateful, and you will be looked after, well.

Perhaps we're learning that Bush doesn't value the contributions of those who take bullets on our behalf. After all, it's his experience that the people who served in Vietnam are suckers who didn't have the family connections to get out of it. Maybe he doesn't see their service as heroic -- which it is -- but sees it as getting the short end of a dumb, unlucky stick.