[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 6]
[House]
[Page 7960]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1700
           TREATMENT OF VETERANS IN FY 2004 BUDGET RESOLUTION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida). Under a 
previous order of the House, the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. 
Langevin) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. LANGEVIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today as a proud American and 
member of the House Committee on Armed Services to strongly condemn the 
cuts to our veterans health care that were pushed through in the House 
budget proposal for fiscal year 2004, and that we thankfully restored 
today when we voted overwhelmingly to instruct conferees to prevent 
those cuts from being considered by the conference committee.
  It is outrageous that upwards of 90 percent of the mandatory spending 
that would have been cut came directly from programs that provide 
service-connected disability and education benefits to our Nation's 
bravest citizens. These programs are the heart of the Veterans 
Administration, and in fact they are the very reason the VA was 
created.
  The across-the-board cuts did not stop there. Discretionary funding, 
which includes veterans health care, was also grievously cut by $14.2 
billion over the next 10 years. Health care takes up 96 percent of that 
spending, meaning we were slashing at least $1.63 billion per year in 
health funding. At a time when this Congress is searching for ways to 
provide better health programs, like a prescription drug benefit to 
seniors, how could we have justified cutting into successful programs 
veterans currently receive? Many of these men and women would have no 
choice but to turn to Medicare because of our actions; and until the 
Spratt amendment, which was passed today, and spearheaded by so many of 
my colleagues on the Democratic side of the aisle, Medicare itself 
would have been cut as well.
  The path this House almost chose to embark upon is even more 
troubling given the action our military is now engaged in overseas. Our 
courageous servicemembers are engaged in dangerous combat, and a number 
of them will inevitably sustain injuries. Madam Speaker, I will not 
return home and tell the brave men and women and families of those 
deployed overseas that we are not doing everything in our power to 
support them when they return. We have promised these benefits again 
and again as the very least we can do to repay the risk and sacrifice 
the men and women of our Armed Forces make on a daily basis. We must 
not break that promise now.
  I choose to show our servicemembers that I support them and will 
continue to support them when they return home from combat. I want them 
to remain confident that they will be cared for should they be injured. 
I want the families to know that they will not be abandoned should, God 
forbid, their loved ones not return home to them.
  Madam Speaker, the Republican budget resolution did none of these 
things and must be improved. We took that step today. Earlier today I 
voted for the Spratt motion to instruct conferees to eliminate proposed 
cuts in so many programs vital to veterans to show our Armed Forces and 
veterans that they are not second-class citizens and that we value 
their efforts and sacrifice. This motion to instruct passed today, and 
I will continue to fight for our veterans just as hard as they have 
fought for us. It is the very least that they deserve.

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