WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) made the following statement on the passage of the Wounded Warriors legislation this morning. The bill included a provision to raise the rates of monthly basic pay for members of the uniformed services by 3.5 percent effective on January 1, 2008. As reported by the Boston Globe in May, in spite of a White House veto threat, Kerry led the fight for greater military pay with the support of Democrats in Congress and Iraq war veterans http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/05/19/bush_resists_democrats_on_military_pay/. Kerry was joined in the effort by Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Penn.). The House measure has not yet been voted on. “Today’s passage is a victory for our brave men and women serving our country,” Senator Kerry said. “The heroes who volunteer to serve in our military and their families who cope with their deployments make sacrifices that you can’t measure in dollars, but they should at least have a raise that reflects their incredible courage and bravery. It’s unacceptable that this White House opposed the raise for our troops, but I’m proud of my colleagues today who stood up and did the right thing. I want to especially thank my friend Patrick Murphy for his leadership on this issue on the House side. Patrick knows the personal toll of this war in Iraq, and he fights every day for his brothers in arms.” “As someone who served in the 138 degree heat of a Baghdad summer, I think it’s unconscionable that a private in Iraq makes less than $18,000 a year,” said Congressman Patrick Murphy. “I was proud to join with Senator Kerry and his life-long fight for our nation’s veterans in this effort. We have to stand up for our troops overseas and their families back at home and I hope President Bush reconsiders his opposition to this commonsense and much-needed pay increase.” In May, the White House opposed the proposed pay raise of 3.5 percent proposed in the FY 2008 National Defense Authorization Bill, calling it “unnecessary.” In response, Kerry wrote to President Bush on May 21, 2007 asking him not to cut the proposed raise and also wrote the Senate Armed Services Committee on the issue. Kerry introduced S. Con. Res. 34 to make the 3.5 percent law. Iraq war veteran Congressman Patrick Murphy introduced the resolution on the House side. Kerry also held a press conference with veteran members of Congress to draw attention to this issue. ###