House and Senate lawmakers last week passed the Respect for Fallen Heroes Act (HR 5037), sending it to the President on May 25. They had hoped to have President Bush sign the legislation before Memorial Day; he signed it on Memorial Day, May 29. The measure restricts the “vile, offensive, and organized protests” that have taken place at military funerals around the country, said Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee. It prohibits demonstrations within 150 feet of a road, pathway, or other route of ingress or egress from national cemeteries either 60 minutes before or 60 minutes after a funeral. The distance was a compromise the Senate reached with the House, which had wanted a 500-foot restriction.
Members of the House Armed Services Committee say the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile program has been set back three months due to the ongoing government shutdown. The comment is noteworthy because the JATM's status has been kept tightly under wraps.
