Cohen to Speaker Boehner: Don't Leave Jobless Veterans Behind
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today joined 160 of his Democratic colleagues from the U.S. House of Representatives in sending a letter to Speaker John Boehner urging an immediate up-or-down vote to extend the expired unemployment insurance program. This letter follows a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities which found that 200,000 veterans are among the more than two million people who have lost their unemployment benefits since they expired at the end of last year.
“Unemployment insurance is critical for these Veterans to be able feed their families and put a roof over their head as they seek to transition from combat to career or try to get back on their feet with a new job,” reads the letter. “For the sake of these Veterans who are heroes, we urge you to allow an up-or-down vote on a proposal to extend unemployment insurance as soon as possible.”
The number of Americans who have lost their unemployment benefits surpassed two million this week. This includes more than 31,000 Tennesseans, according to a new analysis from Ways and Means Committee Democrats. Every week that passes without a vote to extend the emergency unemployment compensation program, an additional 72,000 Americans stand to lose their benefits.
To date, House Republicans have blocked multiple efforts by Democrats to bring up legislation to extend the program on the House floor. Last month, a measure to extend the program came just one vote short of the 60 votes supermajority needed to move the legislation forward in the Senate.