[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 122 (Wednesday, September 12, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H5870-H5871]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     OUR MILITARY PERSONNEL DESERVE A FAIR MILITARY VOTING PROCESS

  (Mr. WILSON of South Carolina asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, both at home and abroad, 
the brave men and women serving in our Armed Forces dedicate their 
lives to protecting this great Nation. Access to absentee voter 
registration within our military's ranks has been increasingly 
difficult due to changing residencies and overseas deployments. In 
order to make voting for our servicemembers more accessible, Congress 
passed the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act. Unfortunately, 
the administration has failed in its implementation.

[[Page H5871]]

  On Thursday, the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military 
Personnel will hold a hearing to investigate these issues in an effort 
to determine why the Department of Defense has failed to properly 
implement the legislation. As chairman of the subcommittee, I look 
forward to hearing witnesses explain and ensure that those serving in 
our Armed Forces are given the best available access to voter 
registration. Every reasonable effort should be made to enable a 
servicemember's ability to vote.
  In conclusion, God bless our troops, and we will never forget 
September the 11th in the global war on terrorism.
  Our sympathies to the families of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and 
our Foreign Service officers in Libya and Egypt.

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