In the final part of our four stories series o on the Afghan interpreters, we hear from 6th District Congressman, Republican Glen Grothman, who represents Eastern Wisconsin, and 3rd District Congressman Democrat Ron Kind.
For the first time in what seems like forever, both sides of the political aisle agreed.
Grothman told Seehafer News, “I think we do have to look out for the people we allowed to believe would be on the winning side if they stuck with the United States.”
Kind agreed, saying “Our honor, our integrity is on the line. We have to take care of those who are willing to risk everything to cooperate with us in Afghanistan.”
And it appears as though that is starting to become a reality quicker than some may have expected.
The big problem with getting the interpreters over here isn’t so much the approval, it’s the speed at which the approval comes. Grothman told us they are working on fixing that right now.
He said he voted in favor of a bill that expedites the process, and that “for these 20,000 to 25,000 people it will not be something where they will be hanging on for years or even months. We can’t afford to let them hang on for months.
We also asked both men how they felt about offering these allies in the war on terror medical or other veteran benefits.
Grothman said that idea isn’t even on his radar right now, and that “The primary discussions that I have been involved in, in the subcommittee that I am involved in, is just to make sure these people are alive a year from now.”
Kind, however, has a different take on it.
“When we do deploy, often times we are doing it on behalf of people, like we were trying to do in Afghanistan, to give them a better way of life,” he explained. “That doesn’t necessarily mean that they should then be entitled to all the VA benefits that our American men and women deserve.”
It could be argued that these interpreters put themselves in just as much danger as those who fought in the U.S. Military, if not more simply based on the fact that they are seen as traitors by those who support the Taliban.
All that matters right now, is that both sides are in agreement, that help needs to come to those who helped us, because as former interpreter, Abadul Jamail told us earlier this week, “If you leave them, of course they are going to turn into an enemy.”
There is a way you can actually aid those still in Afghanistan. The organization known as No One Left Behind is working to help our allies and their families. You can learn more about the organization and make a donation by going to NoOneLeft.org.
