[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 27400]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRULY HONOR OUR VETERANS

  (Mr. DeFAZIO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, Veterans Day, November 11, 150,000 veterans 
will have waited 6 months or longer for appointments for medical care; 
14,000 veterans have been waiting 15 months or longer for expedited 
disability claims; 560,000 disabled veterans will be forced to pay the 
disabled veterans tax. It does not have to be this way. But we are 
confronted with the most anti-veteran, anti-veteran administration in 
Congress in history.
  The President refused to spend $275 million in emergency money. He 
cut off veterans' health care for 160,000 Category 8 veterans. Although 
there are 373 cosponsors to do away with the disability tax, the 
President has threatened to veto the bill if we do away with the 
veterans' disability tax, and Republican leaders refuse to bring up 
that bill here in the House.
  It would be better to celebrate Veterans Day with actions that 
delivered on our promises to veterans than laudatory words; but I fear 
that we will just hear words and not see actions from this Congress and 
this administration.

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