[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 129 (Thursday, October 6, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H8650]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          EQUIPPING OUR TROOPS

  (Mr. BISHOP of New York asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, ``payback'' has more than one 
meaning for our troops. For dozens, perhaps hundreds, of their 
families, it referred to a glaring oversight by the Pentagon that led 
to grave disappointment, dismay and continuing frustration.
  Until the Pentagon finally issued regulations yesterday, 1 year after 
Congress imposed its deadlines, many troops and their families were not 
reimbursed for their body armor, combat helmets and protective gear. We 
ask our troops to risk life and limb to defend us, and yet, 
unconscionably, we made their families pick up the tab.
  With their lives on the line, our troops cannot afford to focus on 
the mission with distractions and worries about family debts incurred 
to help America's war effort. We have spent over $200 billion in 
taxpayer funds to carry out the war in Iraq.
  The first priority for this money should be supplying our troops with 
protective gear they need to survive combat. I commend the Senate for 
voting last night to shift control of this money directly to unit 
commanders in the field.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to measure up to the valor and 
sacrifices of our troops by expanding these rules to also cover rifle 
scopes, additional radios and more armor for Humvees before we approve 
another dime in yet another supplemental funding bill.

                          ____________________