[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 167 (Tuesday, November 10, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7871-S7875]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND VETERANS AFFAIRS AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2016
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will
resume consideration of H.R. 2029, which the clerk will report.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (H.R. 2029) making appropriations for military
construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related
agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2016, and
for other purposes.
Pending:
Kirk/Tester amendment No. 2763, in the nature of a
substitute.
Kirk amendment No. 2764 (to amendment No. 2763), to clarify
the term ``congressional defense committees.''
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the time until 11
a.m. will be equally divided in the usual form.
The Senator from Utah.
Unanimous Consent Request--S. REs. 312
Mr. LEE. Madam President, I rise today to support and to request the
Senate's approval of this resolution, which would designate the second
week of November as National Pregnancy
[[Page S7872]]
Center Week in honor of the lifesaving and life-affirming work of
America's community-supported pregnancy centers.
I am asking for my colleague's unanimous consent because there is
absolutely nothing contentious about this resolution, S. Res. 312, nor
is there anything contentious about the pregnancy resource centers
commemorated by this resolution.
There are approximately 2,500 pregnancy resource centers in America.
Every single day they serve an average of 65,000 women and men faced
with challenging pregnancy decisions, providing them with a wide array
of resources. That includes, at many centers, health care services such
as pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, and testing for STDs and STIs. It
includes emotional and educational support such as options counseling
and parenting classes. It includes material and logistical assistance
to help new moms and dads deal with all the little things that easily
add up to big obstacles in the first few weeks and months of
parenthood.
America's pregnancy resource centers aren't out to make a profit nor
are they out there to push a particular political agenda. They are just
there to help and to do so in a way that is compassionate, considerate
of individual privacy, and respectful of the equal dignity of all human
life.
Any way you look at it, America's pregnancy resource centers deserve
our recognition and they deserve our respect and our gratitude. The
real measure of their significance isn't in the words of a floor speech
in the Senate or the outcome of a vote, it is in the thousands of lives
they help save from the pain of abortion every year and in the millions
of teachers, soldiers, nurses, neighbors, friends, and spouses whose
lives and contributions to our communities we might never have known
had it not been for the unassuming heroes down at the local pregnancy
center who give their time to keep the lights on, answer the phones,
and help young women find the hope and the courage to choose life.
Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to
the immediate consideration of S. Res. 312, submitted earlier today;
that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the
motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with
no intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, reserving the right to object, I would
ask the Senator to modify his request and offer a resolution that
actually helps to move women's health and rights forward.
Simply put, the resolution that the Senator has offered is more of
the same. It is another effort to pander to the extreme Republican base
by using women's health and constitutionally protected rights as a
political football. Unfortunately, it makes it clear for the umpteenth
time that when it comes to improving access to affordable health care
for women, some Republicans are determined to stand in the way of
progress.
I expect that some of my Republican colleagues will say this
resolution shows how much they care about women's health. The truth is
it shows the opposite. It shows once again that the Republican Party
wants to interfere in a woman's medical decision. Strengthening women's
health care doesn't start with telling women what they should and
should not do with their own bodies, but that is exactly what that
resolution does.
If my Republican colleagues really want to support women's
reproductive care, they would work with Democrats on improving access
to affordable birth control under the Affordable Care Act, including
emergency contraceptives, ensuring women and families make their own
decisions about their health care--not their bosses--and fighting back
against efforts across the country to undermine women's
constitutionally protected health care rights.
It is time for Republicans to drop the political attacks on women's
health and instead join Democrats to focus on these priorities and more
like them, so that women--not politicians, not insurance companies, not
CFOs or CEOs--are in control of their health care, as it should be.
Unanimous Consent Request--S. Res. 37
That is why I ask the Senator to modify his request and instead ask
unanimous consent that the HELP Committee be discharged from further
consideration of S. Res. 37, and the Senate proceed to its immediate
consideration; that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed
to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the
table with no intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Will the Senator so modify his request?
Mr. LEE. Madam President, reserving the right to object, there is
nothing divisive about this resolution I have offered today, nothing
divisive whatsoever.
This simply seeks recognition of the great work that is performed by
the men and women who staff these pregnancy centers. There is nothing
about it that is a political football, nothing about it that is
designed to drive a wedge.
Unlike our resolution, the resolution I submitted today, S. Res. 312,
which mainly commends community volunteers around the country for
helping young mothers and their children--hardly divisive--the
Senator's counterproposal is divisive and controversial. My cosponsors
and I only wanted to recognize the life-affirming and lifesaving work,
the kind of work that brings families and communities together the
counterproposal would only pull Americans further apart and further
away from the more humane and compassionate society that all Americans
deserve.
If calling for recognition of these brave and noble men and women who
serve people at pregnancy centers around the country is divisive, we
have significant problems, but the fact is, it is not. I would
encourage anyone within the sound of my voice to read S. Res. 312, and
they will discover it is not the least bit divisive and doesn't discuss
anything that is the least bit controversial.
On that basis, I can't agree with the modification, and I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard to the modification.
Is there objection to the original request?
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I object to the original request.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
The Senator from Maryland.
Armed Services Authorization Bill
Ms. MIKULSKI. Madam President, I rise to speak as in morning business
in terms of the bill we will be voting on at 11:20 a.m. today, the
armed services authorization, as well as what we are going to be voting
on this afternoon, which is veterans health care. They actually go hand
in hand and what a great set of votes in a symmetry that shows our
support for national security, our support for our U.S. military, our
support for our U.S. military who are on Active Duty today, and then
also for our veterans who in their hearts are always on Active Duty.
Today we have the ability to actually show we can govern, we can pass
bills on a bipartisan basis that will help our country be able to
defend itself, show our support to the U.S. military, and honor our
commitment to the veterans. I am looking forward to voting on the armed
services authorization because it does give the tools we need to be
able to defend ourselves. I commend Senators McCain and Jack Reed for
their excellent work.
Madam President, I wish to speak now as the vice chair of the
Appropriations Committee. I am so excited that we are bringing the
MILCON-VA bill to the Senate. I have been voting for veterans ever
since I have come to Congress. Veterans are our Nation's heroes. They
put their lives on the line to fight for our freedom. They have made
tremendous sacrifices for our country. Whether it is veterans who are
still alive from World War II, those who fought on Pork Chop Hill
during the Korean war, the Vietnam war at Mekong Delta, and of course
Desert Storm, Iraq, and Afghanistan, we owe our veterans a debt of
gratitude. We want to show our gratitude not only with words and yellow
ribbons but with deeds. I believe the best deed is to make sure we
adequately fund the Veterans' Administration to end the backlog for
disability benefits--if you fought on the frontlines, you shouldn't
stand in line to get your disability benefits--and to robustly fund
veterans
[[Page S7873]]
health care, along with other benefits this Congress has so authorized.
We have accomplished a lot over the years working for our veterans,
and we will have a lot to do with what is in our legislation. I wish to
commend the subcommittee chair, Senator Mark Kirk, and our vice chair,
Senator Jon Tester, for the work they have done. As we were working on
our bill this summer and through the spring, veterans told me and they
told them that the Senate funding was too spartan; that we were
underfunding our veterans and not just by a few dollars but by $850
million. So we held it up, not as a parliamentary ping-pong, not as a
parliamentary temper tantrum but as a way of saying our veterans need
more money.
As a result of the budget agreement, we are able to do this. We are
on the floor today where an amendment will be offered by Senators Kirk
and Tester to add $2 billion for veterans health care, $2 billion to be
determined by the Secretary.
What do we look forward to? Well, lifesaving drugs. One of course is
this issue of being able to pay for hepatitis C; the other, while we
are looking at actual hands-on medical care, we want to reduce the wait
times. There is too much waiting at the Veterans' Administration,
whether you are waiting for your disability claim or you are waiting to
see your doctor or your mental health counselor or your
ophthalmologist. We need to be able to reduce the wait times, and this
is what part of this $2 billion will do.
Then there are those who are not only chronically ill from the wounds
of war but are chronically and devastatingly injured. So we looked at
those who are unable to care for themselves but are being cared for at
home by loved ones. This will add more funds to be able to help those
caregivers who are stepping up for their responsibility. So they are
taking family responsibility, but we have to take USA responsibility.
That is what we fought for in the $2 billion.
I urge my colleagues to move ahead and be able to vote for this bill.
I do believe this legislation, by adding the money and the kind of
excellent work that has been done by our authorizers, the insistence of
good provisions being put into the bill--we are going to shrink that VA
backlog. Also, we are going to do something else. We are going to
advance funding for mandatory veterans' benefits. So no matter what
government means, if we ever get into more shutdown, slamdown, slowdown
politics due to us, the veterans' benefits will go forward.
I have been working on this backlog for a long time. By the time we
got to March 2013, we were at a national standoff. There were over
600,000 claims pending. In Maryland we had one of the worst claims
offices in my own hometown of Baltimore. I couldn't believe it. When I
met with my Veterans Advisory Board and stories poured out of the kinds
of calls that were coming into my Constituent Services Offices, not
only were they waiting in line--this isn't like just standing in line
at the supermarket, this is for disability benefits, for people who are
in danger of losing their homes and other kinds of things. So we went
to work on a bipartisan basis. I am proud of what we did. I am proud of
our authorizers.
I see Senator Isakson from Georgia is on the floor. He was a big part
of the reform effort. It shows our military knows how to win wars, but
we need to know how we can govern so they don't have to fight a war
with the VA bureaucracy. We hope we will be able to make these reforms.
We are not going to throw money at it. We are going to insist on
metrics.
The last point I wish to talk about is the advance appropriations.
People will say: Aren't VA benefits mandatory? They are unless we get
into one of our parliamentary ping-pong debates.
So I worked with the Disabled Veterans of America and a coalition of
several voluntary veterans service organizations--great groups: the
American Legion, Vietnam Veterans and Iraq and Iran Veterans of
America. They asked me to add advance appropriations to the omnibus 1
year in advance--making sure we funded things 1 year in advance--
protecting them from shutdown and slamdown politics. We were able to do
that again, and I hope we can do that again this year.
I know I have other colleagues on the floor who wish to speak now,
but I wish to say we can really show we not only know how to fight for
America and its security, but we know how to fight for those who do the
fighting.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maine.
Ms. COLLINS. Madam President, I rise on the eve of Veterans Day to
urge my colleagues to support the fiscal year 2016 Military
Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill.
This marks the first time in 2 years that we have had the opportunity
to debate, amend, and vote on this important legislation on the Senate
floor. It is vital to those who serve and to those who have served our
Nation.
I first learned to honor our veterans from my father. My father is a
World War II veteran who was wounded twice in the Battle of the Bulge
and earned his Purple Heart and his Bronze Star. It was he who would
take me to the parades on Veterans Day and on Memorial Day and boost me
high on his shoulders. From the best vantage point in the parade, I
would watch our veterans march by. He taught me of their sacrifice and
that we have a never-ending obligation to thank those who wore the
uniform of our country.
Passing this bill fulfills important obligations that we owe to our
Nation's 22 million veterans, 127,000 of whom live in the great State
of Maine. It sends an important message to our veterans: We will honor
the sacrifices that you made and are making on our behalf. It would be
a mistake to send the opposite message by further postponing or
delaying consideration and final passage of this important bill before
we celebrate our veterans, honor, and remember them tomorrow.
As a member of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee, I know this bill before us now is the result of
bipartisan compromise. I commend the leadership of Chairman Kirk and
Ranking Member Tester, who have worked hand in hand to craft the
managers' amendment that they will be bringing before us today.
In May of this year, the Appropriations Committee reported this
funding bill by a strong vote of 21 to 9. Since then the Bipartisan
Budget Act has been enacted, which provides needed additional resources
to fund vital national priorities and that will be reflected in the
managers' amendment. The managers' substitute would provide a total of
$79.7 billion in funding, which I would note represents more than $1
billion more than the President's budget request.
This bill increases funding for our veterans in areas where they need
it most, including mental health care and benefit claims processing,
two issues which the Senator from Maryland has been so active in
resolving. This bill also includes funds aimed at reducing veterans
homelessness. This is a special priority of mine as the chairman of the
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations
Subcommittee. I worked with Senator Murray on this issue, and we have
made real progress--exciting progress--in reducing the number of
homeless veterans across this country through the VASH Program, but
there is still more work to be done. In addition, this bill includes
$270 million in funding for the Office of Rural Health, through which
the Access Received Closer to Home or the ARCH Program is funded. In
five pilot States in which it operates, ARCH ensures that rural
veterans, who often have a very difficult time accessing the regular VA
health care system--particularly the VA hospitals--can receive care
closer to where they live and where their families live.
I will never forget the story shared with me by a Maine veteran who
broke his hip during a terrible snow storm and needed urgent care. The
ARCH program, located at Cary Memorial Hospital in Caribou, ME, ensured
he could receive the care he needed in his community and close to his
family, rather than enduring a 4-hour drive over bumpy winter roads
during a ferocious snow storm to the Togas VA Medical Center in
Augusta, ME. ARCH has made a tremendous difference for our veterans and
continues to help those who live in rural communities and who are
facing similar challenges and emergencies.
The managers' substitute also increases Veterans Affairs medical
services by nearly $2 billion, including $10
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million for programs supporting caregivers. We all know of the
wonderful work that Elizabeth Dole has done in this area, and I have
been very pleased to join with my colleague Senator Patty Murray in
introducing the Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement
Act. The bill before us is going to help provide benefits for those who
shoulder the responsibilities associated with long-term care for
critically injured veterans. This bill would expand comprehensive
caregiver benefits for those who take on those responsibilities.
I would note, Madam President, that the Senator from Wisconsin,
Senator Baldwin, and I have a broader bill dealing with caregivers that
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions is considering
and I hope will be approving shortly.
In addition to the vital funds for veterans programs, this bill also
funds military construction projects, which unfortunately had been
adversely affected--cut, delayed, deferred--as a result of the budget
caps and the impact of sequestration. Therefore, I am particularly
pleased this bill includes $7.2 million in funding needed to repair,
renovate, and upgrade the 101st Air Refueling Wing's fire and crash
rescue station in Bangor, ME. This is funding for which I have strongly
advocated, and I thank the managers for including it the bill. The
101st ``MAINEiacs'' provide critical 24/7 air and ground refueling
services that support local military operations, and this funding will
strengthen their capabilities.
I would note, Madam President, that I recently met with General
Breedlove, our NATO commander, and he told me he refueled at Bangor,
ME, on his way back from Europe recently.
Madam President, I could go on and on about the important programs
and priorities in this bill. They are essential to providing what we
owe to our servicemembers and our veterans: safe and reliable
infrastructure so that our troops can complete the missions they are
assigned, access to medical care, earned compensation and benefits, and
assistance to help our veterans successfully transition to their
civilian lives.
Tomorrow, on Veterans Day, our Nation will pause to honor all those
who served. Today, we have the opportunity to say to the American
people, to our veterans, and to those who are considering military
service to our Nation that no matter what partisan issues may divide
us, we stand united in fulfilling our commitment to those who serve and
those who have served.
We can send that message by passing this measure and sending to the
President a funding bill that takes care of our servicemembers, our
veterans and their families, and that honors their service to our great
country.
Madam President, I yield the floor.
(At the request of Mr. McConnell, the following statement was ordered
to be printed in the Record.)
Mr. VITTER. Madam President, I wish to support the Military
Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act. This bipartisan bill provides critical resources for our active
military, veterans, and their families.
The courage and sacrifice that define our soldiers, sailors, airmen,
marines, coastguardsmen, and all servicemembers over the years cannot
be understated. Major chapters in our Nation's rich history have been
and continue to be written by our brave servicemen and women, many of
whom hail from Louisiana.
The very least we can do in return is keep our commitments to them.
It is our obligation to fund veterans' health care and benefits, and
this bill does just that while also making necessary reforms to the
scandal-plagued Department of Veterans Affairs.
Our Louisiana veterans have waited a long, long time to have
efficient access to effective health care, and they deserve much better
than what has been handed to them. That is why I have worked for years
to authorize new VA clinics and build interim clinics in southwest
Louisiana, including one in Lake Charles, LA, that is expected to open
before the Thanksgiving holiday.
The latest National Defense Authorization measure has been revised to
reflect the recent budget deal, which modified the spending caps for
both base and war defense spending. In light of these changes, I firmly
believe the administration should honor past statements that current
military reductions are due to defense budget cuts stemming from
sequestration, which have now been postponed for 2 years.
It is critically important to recognize that the newly revised 2-year
budget deal provides necessary relief for the Department of Defense and
allows a much-needed opportunity to avoid further cuts to the Active-
Duty Army's troop strength. Since 2013, the U.S. Army alone has
decreased troop strength 21 percent. That is both dangerous and
unacceptable.
I have fought against dangerously steep drawdowns and was proud to
fight this issue on the Senate floor last year. The United States
cannot afford continued troop cuts at a time when military leaders say
that we are facing an unprecedented number of threats.
I urge my colleagues to support our military and to support this
bipartisan bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in
morning business for 5 minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Veterans Day
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, this Veterans Day we pause to honor the
men and women in our military who stepped up to fight for our freedom
and to protect our families. In my home State of Washington, we have a
lot to be thankful for. More than 600,000 of our friends, our
neighbors, and our family members have bravely served their country.
As the daughter of a World War II veteran, I know the sacrifice it
takes to keep our country safe and protect our values. Thanks to my
father and the countless other veterans I have had the honor of
meeting, I believe that when brave individuals sign up to serve our
country, we must fulfill our promise to support them when they come
home. We should honor our veterans by showing them we have their backs
long after the war is over.
While I would like to stand here and say that our country is doing
everything we can for the people we owe the most to and that we are
fulfilling the promise we made to them when we sent them off to fight
for us, I believe our work is far from over. Though Congress passed a
sweeping bill last year to provide new resources and add more
accountability to the VA, I continue to hear from veterans across my
home State of Washington about care that is falling short. Despite
structural changes at the VA, veterans are still waiting on surgeries
and MRIs and oncology appointments, mental health screenings, you name
it. Our veterans have already fought for our country. They should not
have to fight to get their health care or the benefits they were
promised, so we have to fight on their behalf.
As the senior member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, I am
committed to making this country work better for our veterans. Even
though there are challenges, there is hope. Just 2 weeks ago, we
successfully passed the Homeless Veterans Services Protection Act out
of the Senate to make sure a VA policy change doesn't cut off services
and force veterans onto the street. That bill cleared one hurdle; now I
call on my colleagues in the House to get this done.
I am also fighting to end the VA's outdated ban on fertility services
for veterans so they can start families. There is absolutely no reason
to deny this service for members of our military, especially when they
are injured while fighting for our country. And I believe we must
extend the critically important military caregiver support services
program to veterans of all eras--a program that enables injured
veterans to recover and stay in their homes with their families instead
of being in a hospital or a nursing home.
Madam President, these aren't the only things I am working on.
Because our veterans kept their end of the bargain, we have to keep
ours. That means they should have access to mental health care to help
deal with the often invisible wounds of war. That means a solid path to
a college degree. That means job training programs and transitional
services so that veterans have a path to good careers after their
military service is complete. These things aren't about going above and
beyond; they are the bare minimum of what our country should be doing
to fulfill its promise to care for our veterans.
[[Page S7875]]
So as our country recommits to that promise this Veterans Day, I want
to let veterans know in my home State of Washington and across the
country that I will not stop fighting for them. I again want to express
my heartfelt thanks to all the veterans around the country who have
served and for all who are still serving today.
I call on all of my colleagues and fellow citizens to honor our
veterans every day of the year with the kind of action that shows them
we are grateful for their service.
Madam President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, I want to thank Senator Kirk and
Senator Tester for their outstanding work on this appropriations bill;
Senator Murray for her cooperation and help on caregivers and so many
programs in the committee; and Senator Collins and her work on MILCON.
I want to encourage all my fellow Members of the Senate to vote
favorably on this legislation when it comes before us later today.
I want everyone to stop, take a deep breath, and think about three
things: No. 1, today is the 240th anniversary of the United States
Marine Corps--the strongest veterans we have, veterans who fought and
died for us around the world for 2\1/2\ centuries. Tomorrow, at the
eleventh hour, on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we celebrate
the armistice of World War I and Veterans Day in America. And today on
the floor of the Senate, we are fixing some problems that have
confronted our veterans for the better part of the last 10 years. As
the Members of the committee who are on the floor know, the VA
literally almost collapsed 2 years ago. Health services in Phoenix, AZ,
were a disaster. People were cheating on appointments and shortening
veteran times to make themselves look better. The VA had a reputation
of being the worst agency in the Federal government.
Now, I don't take credit for it as chairman, but I will tell you what
your committee members have done--members like Senator Tester and
Senator Murray. Instead of complaining about people, instead of putting
targets on the wall and saying they are the problem, we decided to be
part of the solution. I want to recite for just a second what has
happened in the last 10 months.
No. 1, we passed the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American
Veterans Act, and this bill funds it. It will help to reduce the number
of suicides. Today, 22 veterans per day commit suicide, and we want
that reduced to a perfect score of zero at some point in time. But you
do that only by investing funds, hiring psychiatrists, and making a
commitment. This Senate and the House have done so.
We had an overrun of $1.428 billion--more than I can count to--in the
Denver hospital the VA was trying to build. They were 13 years into
construction and not even half finished. This committee said that will
not stand. We passed legislation to complete the funding by taking the
money out of VA without additional appropriations from the Congress,
and more importantly we got the VA out of the construction business. We
said: You guys are supposed to take care of the health of our veterans,
not----
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority time has expired, Senator.
Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent to have 3 additional minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mr. TESTER. I just need about 1 minute, Johnny--sorry, the Senator
from Georgia. You can have everything, but just give me 1 minute.
Mr. ISAKSON. How much time remains?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Approximately 2\1/2\ minutes, Senator.
Mr. ISAKSON. Well, let me just give you the closing, and I will leave
all the juicy parts for later on. We will talk about those in the press
release.
The story that should be read about this appropriations bill is we
are not letting our veterans down. We are uplifting our veterans, and
we are seeing to it they get what they deserve. We are seeing to it
that the problems we have seen illustrated in the papers of the United
States of America are being fixed.
The VA is a work in progress. There will still be problems but not
because of attitude or lack of funding and not because of a lack of
commitment by this Congress. We are going to do what our veterans did
for us. We are going to stand ground, we are going to take the hill, we
are going to hold the hill, and we are going to see to it that those
who fought and died for the United States of America are rewarded, not
only for themselves and for their health care but for their retirement
benefits and for their loved ones as well.
I commend Senator Tester on what he has done, Senator Kirk for what
he has done, and all the members of the committee.
I yield back the remainder of the time to the distinguished Senator
from Montana, who can call me Johnny any time he wants to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Montana.
Mr. TESTER. Madam President, I thank the Senator from Georgia. I
appreciate his comments and very much thank him for the compliments.
This MILCON-VA appropriations bill is a critically important bill. Why?
Because we are demanding a lot from the VA. In order to demand a lot,
we need to give them the tools and resources they need to be
successful. It would be totally unfair to put them on the line without
the resources they need to take care of our veterans.
That is important because today we have unprecedented demand. Not
only are our Vietnam veterans getting older, not only do they need
services like never before, but we have been at war for 15 years in the
Middle East, and we have folks coming back with complex injuries. We
have men and women who need help when they get back. Some of these
veterans would not have survived if they had been in any other war but
this one. So the pressure on the VA is incredibly important, and if we
are going to fix the access problem, if we are going to serve our
veterans in the way they need to be served, we need to pass this bill.
Let me finish with a quick story. Not long ago a guy by the name of
Henry--a Vietnam vet from Helena, MT--walked into my office. Henry
fought in Vietnam. He was awarded four Purple Hearts for his combat and
for his sacrifice. Henry walked into my office, sat down across from my
staff member, and said: I can't live any more. Henry was in trouble. He
had behavioral health problems that he needed professional help to get
fixed. We were able to get him to the VA. The VA had a behavioral
health professional who was able to help Henry, and Henry is living a
good life today.
Our veterans deserve no less than to make sure they get the help they
need when they need it, and that is what this bill is about. So we will
be voting on a managers' package soon, and then we will be voting on
passing this bill and getting it to the President's desk. Hopefully, we
can do it with a strong, healthy vote--a unanimous vote, as a matter of
fact--because this is an important bill not only for military
construction but also for veterans.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. McCAIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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