National commander notes Legion's efforts

Wednesday, July 15, 2009
David Rehbein, the national commander of the American Legion, shows off the eagle statue he was given during the Saturday night banquet of the state American Legion convention in Mountain Home.

With well over 300 delegates enjoying the hospitality of Mountain Home, the American Legion Department of Idaho convention wrapped up four days of business last week with a speech highlighted by National Commander David Rehbein.

Rehbein stressed the efforts the Legion has made at the national level to battle for veterans' benefits during his year in office.

But while he touted the successes of the Legion this year, he also warned that national membership would probably fall below 2.5 million this year, in part because of the lack of a national membership drive campaign due to budget constraints, and urged all posts to redouble their efforts at the local level to draw new members to their ranks.

Rehbein said that the Legion should not be concerned about not drawing large numbers of vets from the recent and ongoing wars in the Mideast, however. He asked for a show of hands during the Saturday night Commander's Banquet as to how many had joined the Legion in their 20s. Only a handful of hands went up. Most veterans, he explained, tend to get out of the service and start their families right away, and then join after their lives have become established.

But, he said, their sense of awareness to fight for veteran benefits, and the desire to maintain a link with the comradeship of fellow veterans, is always present in their lives.

Rehbein said that in his first two weeks as national commander he had begun talking with members of Congress about the need to get a budget out on time, and that the new GI Bill needed to be run by the Veteran's Administration, rather than an outside company. "The VA was the right place to go," because it understood veterans' needs better than anyone else.

Congress eventually met both of those criteria, and more importantly, created a two-year budget for the VA, rather than just an annual appropriation, allowing the VA a better opportunity to plan ahead, especially to meet the needs of the newly returning vets. The bill also provided significant increases in funding that will result in 20 new veterans centers being opened around the country, and numerous outreach clinics. "We need to be able to bring medical care closer to our people," he said, "so they don't have to drive 100 miles to seek care." He said President Obama had pledged to increase the VA budget by $5 billion dollars every year for at least the next four years.

He also noted that the Legion had fought hard against a plan by President Obama to have private insurance carriers billed by the VA. The White House, he said, "didn't understand that there should be no more sacrifices." All family medical plans, he said, have maximums for their benefits, but something as simple as a new prosthesis can quickly max out a veteran's coverage.

"We went to the media, and the media responded," he said. "They understood. And that caused the president to withdraw his proposal 48 hours later.

"It's all about the people that need help," he said.

He also noted that the Legion had strongly objected to a Department of Homeland Security report that contended many returning vets had the potential to turn into right-wing extremists.

"The only name they offered in evidence, was Timothy McVeigh (the Oklahoma City bomber), and he was clearly a socieopath.

"Again, we went to the media and the media responded. They stepped up and told the story" and the end result was not only obtaining an apology from the Secretary of Homeland Security, but also a promise that "every time we run a job fair, they would be there to accept job applications," because it is from the returning veterans that the nation finds many of its police officers, firefighters and EMTs.

"We can help them find that first job (after service life) and get them on their feet, so they can avoid that short road to homelessness."

He also said the Legion had fought against a proposed release of pictures of detainees, believing it would add to the dangers faced by troops in the field, and noted that "it took great courage by the president to change his mind (on that issue) and agree to continue the court fight" to prevent the release of those photos.

He praised the service of the troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, and offered several examples of how much things there have changed over the last three years, especially in Iraq where Iraqi troops are now capable of carrying a heavier burden of responsibility for the war.

In a recent trip there, he said, he was told that with the American withdrawl from the cities of Iraq, planners expected violence there to go up, as the insurgents tested the Iraqi forces, but "our people over there believe they (the Iraqi military and police forces) will be able to handle it."

But he also warned that the war in Iraq will present unique challenges for future veterans. The ever-present dust of the country, he predicted, could lead to long-term lung problems for veterans, and the government needs to be monitoring that potential problem closely. "We don't want to have to fight a battle over that like we did with Agent Orange or Gulf War Syndrome," he said.

He also noted that increasing problems with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) means that the VA will be needing more money to hire, train and get into the field additional mental health counselors.

And more trained claims personnel are needed, as well, to reduce the time it takes a veteran to receive needed services, he said.

"We need to keep the pressure on," he said, "because these people out there need us."

He went on to thank all those attending the banquet for their leadership in helping promote veteran's causes from the grassroots level up.

Rehbein's speech concluded an evening marked by the presentation of a number of awards.

Every year the American Legion recognizes individuals that have excelled in their communities. Winning the statewide awards were:

* Outstanding Fire Fighter: Rick Payne, nominated by Boise John Reagan, Post 2.

* Outstanding Police Officer: Robert Weinclaw, nominated by Plummer, Post 69.

* Outstanding Paramedic of the year: Ryan Asher, nominated by Post Falls, Post 143.

* Fourth Estate Award (Media): Brian Walker, nominated by Post Falls, Post 143.

* Educator of the year: Albert Cinnamon, nominated by Emmett, Post 49.

* Eagle Scout of the Year: Andre Heidt (the award included a $500 scholarship).

* PNC Alan G. Lance, Sr. Award of Excellence: awarded by Department of Idaho Commander Tom Mattice to Wayne Mitchell.

* Legionnaire of the Year: Art Gimpel.

In addition to the awards, both the Legion and the Auxiliary delegates (who held a parallel convention), conducted their regular business, passing resolutions and selecting state officers and national representatives. The results of those elections were not immediately available.

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  • It is wonderful that the American legion recongized the individuals mentioned in this article. It is a tremendous honor for each of them. Unfortunately the author failed to also inlcude Ray Cotton, DVOP, with the Idaho Department of Labor who was also received an award for being selected as the Local Veteran Employment Representative of the year for the State of Idaho. Mr. Cotton works in the Department of Labor's Mountain Home office and takes an extremely active role in assisting our military veterans and their families with finding employment.

    The American Legion also recongized Steve Lord, a veterans representative with the Idaho Department of Labor from the Treasure Valley area who has been identifed as the DVOP of the year not only for the State of Idaho, but for the entire United States and will receive his national award during the Legion's annual convention. The Legion also recognized 3 business in the State of Idaho for going above and beyond in hiring military veterans and members of their families.

    Best wishes,

    -- Posted by Albert Clement on Wed, Jul 15, 2009, at 11:58 AM
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