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During the war, politicians wanted to avoid the postwar confusion about veterans' benefits that became a political football in the 1920s and 1930s. Click to subscribe for more WWII videos! http://bit.ly/WWIISubscribe America Goes to War now on Amazon! http://bit.ly/AmericaGoesToWar President Franklin D. Roosevelt wanted a postwar assistance program to help transition from wartime, but he also wanted it on a need-basis for poor people, not just veterans. Worldwide digital video distribution by Janson Media http://www.janson.com The veterans' organizations mobilized support in Congress that rejected FDR's approach and provided benefits only to veterans of military service, including men and women. Ortiz says their efforts "entrenched the VFW and the Legion as the twin pillars of the American veterans' lobby for decades." Harry W. Colmery, a former national commander of the American Legion and former Republican National Chairman, is credited for writing the first draft of the G.I. Bill. He reportedly jotted down his ideas on stationery and a napkin at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. U.S. Senator Ernest McFarland, D-Arizona, was actively involved in the bill's passage and is known, with Warren Atherton, as one of the "fathers of the G.I. Bill." One might then term Edith Nourse Rogers, R-Mass, who helped write and who co-sponsored the legislation, as the "mother of the G.I. Bill". Like Colmery, her contribution to writing and passing this legislation has been obscured by time. The bill was introduced in the House on January 10, 1944, and in the Senate, the following day, both chambers approved their own versions of the bill. The bill that President Roosevelt initially proposed had a means test—only poor veterans would be aided. The G.I. Bill was created to prevent a repetition of the Bonus March of 1932 when World War I veterans protested for years they had not been rewarded. An important provision of the G.I. Bill was low interest, zero down payment home loans for servicemen, with more favorable terms for new construction compared to existing housing. This encouraged millions of American families to move out of urban apartments and into suburban homes. Another provision was known as the 52–20 clause. This enabled all former servicemen to receive $20 once a week for 52 weeks a year while they were looking for work. Less than 20 percent of the money set aside for the 52–20 Club was distributed. Rather, most returning servicemen quickly found jobs or pursued higher education.