After giving thousands of California soldiers bonuses for re-enlisting in the National Guard, the Pentagon is now asking soldiers to return the money they were paid almost 10 years ago, according to a new report.
The payments came during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan when the Pentagon feared a shortfall of troops, according to a Los Angeles Times investigation published Saturday.
Recently completed audits revealed that the California National Guard was overpaying bonuses due to a lack of oversight at the time, the investigation found.
Veterans who spoke to the newspaper expressed their frustration and financial difficulties with the payment demands, which include wage garnishments, interest payments and tax liens for soldiers declining to pay.
The soldiers should not be burdened with correcting the mistakes of bureaucrats in the back office. This is very easy to fix if only Congress and the President would lift a finger.
More liberalism run amock.
Just imagine if this was done to inner city welfare recipients, there would be a different liberal reaction.
I agree it is silly to ask for a refund. Just as it was silly to offer a bonus to begin with. We got no bonus in 1970, just a free plane ride to SE Asia. Some of the lucky ones like me got a free ride back.
Yes, and imagine what would happen if WEDC asked all the recipients of their loans to repay the money, oh the horror. More conservative policy run amock (sic).