Congress to Make Ft. Hood Victims Eligible for Purple Hearts

A long-standing injustice perpetrated by the Obama Administration is about to be overturned by Congress, as reported at the Washington Examiner:

Congress is set to make victims of the 2009 Fort Hood shootings eligible for Purple Hearts and combat injury benefits after the Obama administration has denied them the status for the past five years.

House Republicans, working with the Democratic-controlled Senate Armed Services Committee, added a provision to the defense authorization bill that would give battlefield recognition for the victims of the deadliest attack on a domestic military installation in U.S. history. It passed on a voice vote with strong bipartisan support.

The measure, which is expected to pass Congress next week, also would end a five-year effort by Texas GOP Reps. John Carter, Michael Conaway and Roger Williams to give the victims the status, the Military Times first reported.

The victims have long asked the Pentagon to label the attack terrorism so they would be eligible for the Purple Hearts and added combat-related benefits. But Defense Secretaries Robert Gates, Leon Panetta and Chuck Hagel have stuck to the original assessment that the attack by Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Hassan was an act of workplace violence.

The new language in the defense bill says Purple Heart medals can be awarded to “members of the armed forces killed or wounded in domestic attacks inspired by foreign terrorist organizations,” according to the Military Times.

“Workplace violence.”  That still burns me up every time I hear it.  It’s hard to imagine how jihadi traitor Nidal Hassan’s status as a enemy combatant could be any clearer.  Not only did he describe himself that way to anyone who would listen, notably including al-Qaeda honcho Anwar al-Awlaki, but he actually had “Soldier of Allah” printed on his business cards.  On the other hand, Hassan didn’t do anything really outrageous, like criticize the Obama daughters’ wardrobe.

It’s an outrage the Ft. Hood attack was treated as “workplace violence” for a single day, and long past time Congress did something about it.