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DAV LEANS ON MEMBERS TO DENY VETERANS THE RIGHT

TO AN ATTORNEY -- Hands out petitions to repeal

"Attorneys for Veterans" legislation.

 

 

Story below:

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The Disabled American Veterans (DAV), sensing a failure of their lobbying efforts in the halls of Congress, is reaching out to their members to help deny veterans the right to an attorney in the VA claims process.

Last year, Congress passed legislation that would allow veterans the right to hire an attorney, if they wished, after receiving a denial of claim from the VA.  Background with backlinks here...
 http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/
nf07/nfFEB07/nf021407-1.htm

The DAV cut a deal to have that legislation overturned, which if passed would deny veterans the right to an attorney.  Repealer legislation has been introduced (H.R.1318).  That story here...
 http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/
nf07/nfMAR07/nf030807-8.htm

But, Congress is not falling all over itself to embrace the DAV's position.  So, the DAV is encouraging their members to sign petitions encouraging lawmakers to overturn the "Attorneys for Veterans" law.  This would indicate that the DAV does NOT have the votes to repeal this legislation, so they are leaning on their members to petition Congress.

Below is a letter sent out by the DAV.  Included with it was a petition that local DAV leaders could copy and hand out to members.

The DAV is wrong on this issue.  Having an attorney is a right.  Even suspected terrorists are allowed an attorney.  Why not veterans?  The DAV won't address that issue.

I encourage all of you who favor "Attorneys for Veterans" to contact your lawmakers and urge them NOT to repeal the legislation as it exists today.

Tell them to vote NO on H.R.1318.

Following is a comment about this move by the DAV from an attorney who represents veterans in the VA claims process:

"As I have written to you in the past, and as you have seen, there are very damaging decisions affecting veterans and their dependents which have been issued by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) in the past year, which can be overturned only by congressional action. Instead of focusing on using their influence in Congress to have legislation introduced to overturn these decisions the DAV has chosen to abandon veterans and their dependents to these adverse decisions and instead, to focus on their own selfish self interest.

DAV, of all organizations supposedly devoted to serving veterans and their dependents, is well aware (as shown by their recent testimony concerning the VA adjudication process) that neither Congress nor any administration, Democrat or Republican, has ever seen fit nor will see fit, due to the enormous cost involved, to provide the necessary funds for VA to hire and properly train sufficient adjudicators to "fix" the "broken" VA claims process. So DAV has selfishly chosen to protect its own interests rather than those of the veterans and their dependents for whom they supposedly serve. This is reprehensible and shameful, and veterans and their dependents should know the truth!"

 

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Larry Scott  --