I'll say what many won't and you can quote me "Republicans don't care about the American soldier the one thing they hate more is veterans". Lets ignore the fact that young men and women were sent to Iraq on ginned up intelligence and paid informants but look at how they were sent. The stories were common of American soldiers asking their family to send them protective gear because they weren't supplied body armor and even to the point of sending them metal because the vehicles they were driving were not armored. Soldiers were killed in the shower because of faulty wiring and set up by KBR yet no one was held accountable and the company profited billions from the war. That's right while we couldn't arm or give better benefits to our brave men and women we found money to make Halliburton, KBR and other war profiteers rich and well armed.
There are some soldiers republicans like and that's ones they can exploit for political gains. They exploited the hell out of the tragic death of Pat Tillman even knowing it was friendly fire and never fully investigating or releasing the information on his passing. If you passed away in war republicans would exploit you, if you were unlucky enough to get injured all they have done since is punish you for your service and injuries.
The best example of republican priorities is the Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act of 2014 which was supported by the VFW, American Legion, Afghan vets of America, Paralyzed vets of America and Vetsfirst It was a bill that would help military veterans from WWII - the current wars get the much needed healthcare but also an education or jobs training so we wouldn't have so many homeless veterans or veterans living in poverty. It had support of everyone and when it came time to vote it got blocked by 41 republicans who filibustered it. Why did they filibuster and vote against veterans health and benefits? It cost a few billion dollars, that's right the party who took us to war and spent trillion in Iraq and Afghanistan now refuse to help the brave men and women injured in that fight because it costs money.
Between 2010 and 2012 when the GOP took over control of the house of representatives they voted 7 times against veteran bills
Wounded Veteran Job Security Act became H. R. 2875.
Veterans Retraining Act
Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program Reauthorization
Requiring List on VA Website of Organizations Providing Scholarships for Veterans
Disabled Veterans Home Improvement and Structural Alteration Grant Increase Act
Veterans Business Center Act
Job Creation Through Entrepreneurship Act
What did republicans have time to do? They following things were added to military defense bills that were supposed to be for funding our military but used to promote their own agenda ahead of supporting our brave men and women
2006 - made it illegal for American financial institutions to fund online poker websites.
2014 - turned ancient native American burial grounds over to a mining company, not even an American mining company but a foreign company with ties to selling Nuclear materials to Iran
2015 - block a new law that prevents predatory lending to active military and veterans. This law was written by Wall Street and major banks to allow them to offer high interest loans to military personal and put them in a massive debt so they have to keep borrowing including payday lenders.
2014 - 100 million cut from women and children food programs for the poorest Americans
2014 - put the government back on the hook for bank bailouts, Dodd Frank bill made it so banks had to gamble with their own money and could not be bailed out by the government again. Republicans repealed this and as of 2015 banks are now allowed to gamble with your money knowing full well the government has to bail them out just like in 2008
2014 - raise the limits a couple can give to a political party to 1.3 million dollars
Next time a Defense bill is coming up for a vote look close at it, it's where republicans hide all their dirty little wish list items that have nothing to do with military but are usually written by Wall Street and why do they do this? Republicans know that unlike them democrats will support soldiers and veterans and not vote to put them in harms way or leave them in poverty.
Next time someone tells you republicans support our troops call bullsh*t. These are the same republicans that exploited the bodies of 9/11 for political gains from the moment the towers fell and when the 1st responders started getting sick and dying from diseases they got cleaning up the mess or trying to save people it was the republicans who voted against giving these men and women healthcare for their service.