Issue Position: Veterans

Issue Position

America's brave men and women in uniform are arguably our nation's greatest assets. They risk their families, their comforts, and their lives in order to protect those very same freedoms for their fellow countrymen. Their unrelenting sacrifice and sense of duty to their homeland and their brothers and sisters is a virtue that must be held in the highest regard.

It is true that America is at a serious crossroads as far as our fiscal house is concerned. We face a staggering $14.3 trillion debt and our government continues to run a deficit each year. That said, it is my belief that the federal government must always honor our soldiers by making sure they are taken care of and we must therefore look to other superfluous areas of the budget to make the cuts needed to ensure our country's prosperity and viability. These men and women that put so much on the line in the name of freedom and democracy should not have to go wanting for basic benefits provided by the very government and country that they fought and served for.

You may be interested to know that in fiscal year 2011, the federal government appropriated almost $120 billion to the Veterans Administration. These monies went towards helping our veterans obtain housing, health services, and education loans, among other things.

Multiple bills pertaining to soldiers, veterans, and their families have been introduced in the 112th Congress, and I am looking at each of them. Each will be debated in the House Armed Services Committee--a committee of which I am not a member. Rest assured, though, that I will follow debate on each closely, and look forward to further debating the bills on the House floor and will be keeping your thoughts in mind as I prepare myself to vote.

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