Hate to say this, but do these Republicans have any balls to do what is right? And stand up to save our Democracy.

To counter the negative use of the term "ObamaCare" you can use "Romneynocare" its ok to post or say young lady, its cool with me.

Whats wrong Rachel... book not selling as well as expected?

Enough with the Veterans hawking... Black people are being disenfranchised,

profiled and murdered... Surely you can build an hour around those issues.

Wait, I guess you'll leave that to the liberals...

So let me get this straight...Rachel is extolling the virtues of Claire MsKaskel and

Jon Tester as they break ranks with the President in NOT going to the Democratic

convention. Could this bitch be any more BLUE DOG?... Wow... just Wow!!

How come the intern only got side-angle face time? It was like she was sitting for a old time portrait. Give your guest previewers more presence with Bill!

Oh, I am soo waiting for that Karl Rove story! I have to check if I heard right!

I'm listening to Rep. Filner and Rachel about disability. Rep. Filner is totally ignorant in suggesting an IRS like approach to disability. I've been in disability law for 18 years and I can tell you it's incredibly complex to figure out whether or not someone is disabled and to what extent. The VA has a percentage type system and that has its own complexities. If we did what Filner suggests you know how many people would be receiving new disability benefit checks in the next two or three months? - probably around one million. People convince themselves they're disabled because they need money. On the other hand there are plenty of disabled veterans who will never get paid no matter how well they document their claims, that's just what happens. There are lots of non-disabled veterans who will collect full disability checks for decades. It's screwed up. Welcome to the real world.

Yes, it's troubling that it takes a long time to figure out and process claims for VA disability and I don't like it either. But, you can't just look at somebody and figure it out, "oh you look disabled here's a check." You cannot just look at somebody and tell if they're disabled. Some people who are disabled appear perfectly normal and some people who are perfectly able to work can appear to be "disabled." You have to examine medical records, schedule consultative examinations, review the claim, make a determination, then permit an appeal to an independent Judge. These things take time, you can't just magically figure it out overnight and clear out a backlog in a matter of months. The fact is these things take years to fix and it will probably never be fast, and maybe it shouldn't be.

The easiest way to clear out a backlog is to try and separate the obvious cases of disability where there are already lots of medical records and expedite the easy calls approving those cases as quickly as possible. That still leaves the vast majority of cases to go through a long complicated process. I don't know how to improve on that except to spend more money on the VA process to provide more people to process claims more quickly. But it's never going to be fast for the vast majority of claims. An IRS process? I don't think so.

Not for nothing, but if soldiers are ONLY waiting a year for approval of their disability claims they're still doing much better than their non-combatant equivalent.

The typical delay from initial application for SSI disability payments to a decision is 18 months to 2 years, requires at least one court appearance (before an administrative law judge) and is nearly impossible to navigate without an attorney who specializes in this area. Just the initial application form is more than 10 pages, and this system is supposedly designed to serve people whose health is so seriously compromised they can't hold a job.

@William Newbill

Do you mean to say that there isn't even a way to automatically grant 40% of the disability claim, pending the long administrative process you describe? If the vet really isn't disabled, that there isn't any way to claw back the money?

When the banking system went, in the late days of the Bush administration, Congress appropriated $700 billion in borrowing facility like nothing. The public footed the capital to keep the banks from collapsing in domino fashion. The bankers turned around and approved massive bonuses for themselves. There was no worry from, ehem, some of the same tight-money critics in Congress, as to whether the bankers "deserved" the money. The attitude was "fix the banks" and worry about the right and wrong later (if ever).

There must be a way to provide vets with stop-gap money, with the presumption that they're good for it, until the beancounters and magistrates get ready to find out if they are really good for it. This would be, well, an IRS-style return process.

Give the returning vets assistance as soon as the systems can process their claims. I agree with Fredrick Gundlach. Well said sir!

Rachael, I just listened to Col. Wayne Powell , who is runnimg against Eric Cantor in Richmond Va. You need to get him on you show soon . What a wonderful speaker, he is also a democrat I cant list all the things he would like to do and change but he was Dam good in explaining things I would love to hear him again and it would be great coverage. Not only that he is a veteran. I am from Mass. only wish I could vote for him.

Rachel should be more careful about using the term "VA" broadly. Like the military, the VA actually consists of multiple divisions. Both she and her guest sounded like poseurs last night when talking about VA. VBA or the Veteran's Benefit Administration has been plagued by inefficiency for years but many of these inefficiencies are actually rules imposed by the DoD. Actual health care delivered by VHA or the Veterans Health Administration is amazing considering longstanding GOP resistance to funding the VA (just look at funding increases for VA during the start of the Iraq and Afghan conflicts). VHA has undergone a number of quality "transformations" since the Clinton administration that have been led by America's best clinical researchers at university and private healthcare systems all over the country. Rather than being an abysmal failure, VHA is a trendsetter that is admired around the world for its constant innovation, dedication to a high standard of excellent care (in light of budgetary uncertainty), and commitment to serving a high risk Veterans. NOTE: VHA is obligated to serve America's most vulnerable Veterans (due to service disability, economic need, mental health impairment) whereas most Veterans receive care through TriCare or private insurance. In other words, many Veterans would be without healthcare without VA. VHA has been the leader in national electronic health records, comparative effectiveness research, and innovations that improve the quality and safety in Veteran care. It is the nation's leader in delivering preventing care services ranging from cancer screening to weight management. Avoid the strident talk with an representative eager to retire to a cushy mayoral office rather than speak truthfully and accurately.