9-11 bill passes; it's about time

The following editorial appeared in The Jonesboro Sun:

How in the world did politics get in the way of passing the 9-11 health and compensation bill? It should have been passed by a unanimous vote, or something close to it, months ago. But the Senate only Wednesday could come to an agreement clearing the way for passage in the waning moments of a lame-duck session. After that, it was to go back to the House to work out some minor differences.

There’s no excuse why the legislation shouldn’t have been law several months ago.

The bill passed the House of Representatives in September, but on Dec. 9 Republican senators, led by Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, chose to block it by threatening a filibuster. Coburn said the bill was too expensive, a waste of money and had not been properly aired in committee.

He was dead wrong on all three counts.

First, the cost has been pared from $7.4 billion to $6.2 billion to $4.2 billion. Senate Republicans didn’t think twice about supporting a nearly $900 billion tax cuts package which they had been holding hostage to make sure millionaires were included. And most also voted Tuesday to authorize another $160 billion on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — as part of a $725 billion defense authorization bill. It included another $11.6 billion for development of Afghan security forces.

If the United States can spend that kind of money abroad on foreign personnel, we can surely afford to spend a few billion dollars on our own personnel. Otherwise, we should cut something out of the foreign aid budget.

It’s a question of priorities, and for some reason the people who came to Americans’ aid after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, didn’t merit a top priority with Coburn and others like him.

A waste of money?

The 9-11 attacks on the World Trade Center not only killed almost 4,000 people, but the aftermath has also sickened and-or killed many of the first responders, workers and volunteers who worked at ground zero that day and for months afterward. The fires released a toxic plume that spread deadly gases, dusts and other contaminants over much of Manhattan.

For example, health studies have shown that firefighters exposed to the contaminants experienced a significant decline in lung capacity, according to The New York Times. Many developed sarcoidosis, a disease that leads to inflammation of various organs and attacks the immune system. Many workers have died in the nine years since 9-11.

The Associated Press said the bill didn’t get traction until a couple of cable TV personalities, Fox News anchor Shepard Smith and comedian and activist Jon Stewart, who are on the opposite side of most issues, championed the cause and shamed some lawmakers into action.

Finally, the legislation will become law, and many sick heroes of 9-11 will get badly need help, but the sad history of this bill is yet another testament to a Congress that doesn’t have its priorities straight.