American Legion Commander strongly opposes budget cuts - WLOX.com - The News for South Mississippi

American Legion Commander strongly opposes budget cuts

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WAVELAND, MS (WLOX) -

Eighty-five billion dollars could be cut from the nation's budget if a deal is not reached by Congress and the President on Friday.

The cuts would have a big impact on our nation's military, something the National Commander of the American Legion, Jim Koutz, said would be devastating.

"Before the election we were promised by pretty much everybody that there would be no cuts in The Department of Defense or the VA," Koutz said. "You know with thousands and thousands of troops coming home in the next five years we can't be cutting the VA. We surely can't be cutting The Department of Defense."

Making cuts to these departments Koutz said is a mistake that could create more hardships for the men and women, who fight for our freedom.

"They are coming home to no cars. They are coming home to no jobs. So we are very worried about that," Koutz said.

The nation's security is also at risk, according to Koutz.

"The aircraft carrier is sitting in Northfork, VA right now, the USS Truman. They decided not to send it out because of budget restraints," Koutz said. "We have got to worry about the protection of this country. We can't let things be sitting here in the United States when it is supposed to be in the Persian Gulf.

Koutz believes these cuts could be tragic for the entire country and has a message for Congress: "Quit bickering with one another. Sit down, work out the problems we have. Get a budget passed so we don't have to worry about sequestration," Koutz said.

He has a meeting with the president on Thursday where he is prepared to share his thoughts in hopes the cuts will be diverted.

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