Issue Position: Support Veterans & Military Families

Issue Position

We should honor our commitments to veterans, service members, and military families.

Every veteran deserves our respect and gratitude for their work both in service and since returning to civilian life.
Many politicians talk big about their support for veterans, but few get into the trenches to fight for those who served. Those who put their lives on the line for this country are owed a coherent strategy and a definition of victory for the endless wars -- estimated at $250 million a day -- that this country has been fighting in the greater Middle East for the last 18 years.

Julie cares deeply about veterans and military families -- her Dad is a vet, and she knows that veterans don't stop serving when they come home. Julie is very grateful for the advocacy and leadership of the veterans who testified about their health problems stemming from haphazard burning in Iraq. We have to act urgently to care for those who have been exposed to burn pits, and we have to ensure that this never happens again.

You can count on Julie to take meaningful action to uphold our commitments to veterans and military families more than any other candidate, because Julie doesn't take a single dime from any PAC -- that means, when she's hearing legislation in Congress having to do with our national security, you will never have to wonder if Julie is acting on behalf of a military defense contractor. She is only accountable to this community.

Julie is committed to addressing America's healthcare crisis broadly, and especially as it pertains to veterans and the ability for veterans to get their disability claims met in a more timely fashion.

Veterans risked their lives to support our democracy, and it's time that we use our democracy to more fully support them. Julie will increase access to VA clinics and veteran support services, and fight to streamline processes so that it's easier for our vets to get help when they need it.

In Congress, Julie is committed to:
1. Improving the VA, through community-based feedback, and by ensuring that those making decisions about how we improve the VA are themselves veterans.
2. Ending the federal prohibition on cannabis, and allowing cannabis to be used in place of addictive opioids for pain treatment, anxiety, PTS, and other conditions.
3. Supporting the Burn Pits Accountability Act (H.R. 663), which requires that the Department of Defense evaluate servicemembers' exposure to burn pits through periodic health assessments, physical exams conducted immediately prior to separation from active duty, and deployment assessments.
4. Ensuring that VA providers include gun safety and safe storage as part of their routine services.
5. Ending the scourge of veteran suicide in this country by ensuring that VSO's, the VA, and other community providers have the resources they need to provide high-quality mental health services.
6. Ensuring that no veteran goes homeless in this country.
7. Improving the claims and appeals response times so that veterans can get treatment and compensation for their injuries in a much more timely fashion.
8. Passing the Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act (HR 1151), which would allow veterans to use, possess, or transport medical marijuana and to discuss the use of medical marijuana with their physician at the VA.

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