It was more than a bit of a surprise when presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, who went to bat against torture in American military prisons, came out against new education benefits for soldiers.
The bill mandating the benefits, which passed the Senate in spite of McCain's opposition, would cover tuition at any university up to the cost of in-state tuition in their home states' universities for veterans serving three years or more, and pay a monthly stipend for housing. College benefits for vets today are a far cry from what they were when World War II-era soldiers got full tuition and living expenses paid under the G.I. Bill; this bill, filed by Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia, like McCain a Vietnam combat veteran, would partly correct for the difference.
Asked why he didn't favor Webb's proposal, McCain said it might hurt the military's retention rates and draw servicepeople out of Iraq. He has outspokenly supported continuing the war in Iraq.
With all the sparring about college benefits for vets going on in Washington, it's gratifying that the UMass Board of Trustees has voted in a measure that will give Massachusetts servicepeople a chance to attend the state university a little more cheaply than they could have without it.
The so-called Welcome Home Waiver Program will go into effect this fall. It will let Massachusetts residents who have served six months or more on active duty in Iraq or Afghanistan write off $1,000 per semester in fees up to a maximum of eight semesters, or $8,000. Some 26,000 people in Massachusetts are potentially eligible for the benefit.
It's worth noticing that the Welcome Home Waiver Program was the brainchild of Trustee Lawrence Boyle, who several years ago raised a voice to protest a $1 million severance package for former UMass president Billy Bulger when Bulger had already been handed a last-minute raise that padded his pension considerably. Boyle was the lone dissenter, and Bulger received the package. This time Boyle, a UMass Boston grad who served in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War, had the support of others on the Board of Trustees.
