For far too long, members of the Minnesota National Guard’s 34th Infantry division – known as the “Red Bulls” – have been caught in a bureaucratic nightmare that delayed bonus pay they’d earned during their deployments in Iraq.  After many months and continued pressure from members of Congress in both parties, it appears as though this long-overdue problem is finally headed toward a solution.   

The Pentagon is stating now that they’ve issued orders to begin paying these troops, while blaming the problem on a loophole that prevented the payments until now. 

Frankly, this type of delay – whatever the excuse – is outrageous.  This was already a problem before I took office, and the fact that it has continued this long is ridiculous.  After taking office last year, I quickly joined forces with members of the Minnesota Congressional delegation on this issue, sending letters requesting an immediate solution and asking that Congress make money available to our soldiers.  I am also the lead co-author of legislation that would have created an immediate fix to this problem.   I also voted for the bill that authorized the troops to be paid, as well as legislation to appropriate the necessary money to ensure they were paid.  Unfortunately, the money was not included in the final bill that went through the Senate, despite bipartisan support.

And while this week’s news that the bureaucracy may finally be moving forward is encouraging, the issue remains unresolved until the checks are in the hands of our Red Bulls.  They spent more time in Iraq than any other National Guard unit – and the commitments made to them by our government should never have been derailed by bureaucracy in the first place.  I will continue working with my colleagues in both parties until the government finally gives these soldiers the money they’ve earned – and I will be looking at ways to ensure this type of travesty never happens again.   

UPDATE (2/17):  Minnesota 2nd District Congressman John Kline, who has worked extensively on this issue, received assurances from the office of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates yesterday that Minnesota’s Red Bulls will begin receiving their pay in mid-March.  This is great news and I applaud his continued work on this critical issue.  You can read more HERE.   

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