[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 759]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      KEEPING PROMISES TO VETERANS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. Speaker, for the past 14 years, I have had the 
privilege of representing the largest U.S. Army installation in the 
world, Fort Hood, an installation that has sent over 40,000 brave 
American soldiers to fight in Iraq. That is why I am so deeply offended 
and shocked that the Under Secretary of Defense in this administration, 
the Under Secretary of Defense for personnel and readiness, Dr. Chu, 
was quoted in today's Wall Street Journal as saying, in reference to 
programs funding military retirees and veterans, ``The amounts have 
gotten to the point where they are hurtful. They are taking away from 
the Nation's ability to defend itself.''
  I am appalled, Mr. Speaker, and I believe veterans and military 
retirees all across this country have a right to be offended that the 
Under Secretary of Defense in this administration would say that the 
very men and women who risk their lives and sacrifice greatly to defend 
our Nation are responsible for hurting our Nation's ability ``to defend 
itself.'' It is a wrong statement.
  The truth is that veterans have kept their promises to our Nation and 
now our Nation has a moral obligation to keep its promises to those who 
have served our Nation in uniform. The truth is, Mr. Speaker, that 
respecting the sacrifices of our veterans in responsible ways with 
quality health care and decent benefits is not only the right thing to 
do, because our veterans have earned those benefits, it is the smart 
thing to do.
  As someone who has represented 40,000 soldiers over the last 14 
years, I can tell you that when we break our promises to yesterday's 
service men and women we call veterans, today's service men and women 
are going to pay attention. The fact is, in a voluntary military force, 
we cannot bring the best and brightest into our military if we do not 
keep our promises made to our veterans.
  My good colleague and friend from Texas, the previous speaker, talked 
about the 58 percent increase in veterans funding during this 
administration. That is part of the facts. The rest of the story is 
that much of those increases came from the leadership of Democrats and 
Republicans here in this Congress. The fact is that over the last 
couple of years we have added well over $1 billion, now approaching $2 
billion in funding for veterans health care that the administration did 
not ask for.
  The fact is that we are spending too little, not too much on our 
veterans and military retirees. The truth is that last year's budget 
for veterans health care did not even keep up with inflation. So, in 
effect, we had a real cut in veterans health care spending during a 
time of war. What happened to the principle of shared sacrifice during 
a time of war?
  I find it outrageous and offensive that Secretary Chu blamed veterans 
for trying to undermine our Nation's security, when just as easily this 
administration, along with Dr. Chu, could suggest perhaps we reduce a 
little bit of that $124,000-a-year tax break that the administration 
and the Republicans in Congress have given to people in America making 
over $1 million a year.
  Maybe before we start blaming military widows for undermining our 
Nation's security, maybe before Dr. Chu starts criticizing veterans and 
military retirees who risked their lives in Vietnam and Iraq, Korea, 
Iwo Jima and Normandy, maybe they should look at their own policies 
that have provided tax breaks for Members of Congress, tax breaks for 
people making over $1 million a year that, in my opinion, make a farce 
out of the quintessential American value and principle of shared 
sacrifice during a time of war.
  I would hope Dr. Chu will quickly retract his outrageous attack on 
our Nation's finest, those men and women who have served our country so 
admirably in uniform.

                              {time}  2015

  Mr. Speaker, I would hope that the administration before the sun sets 
another day will say that Dr. Chu's statement does not reflect 
administration policy. I hope that the Republican leadership in the 
House joins with me in a bipartisan effort to criticize this outrageous 
and wrong attack on America's military veterans and retirees.
  The fact is we should be saluting our veterans, especially during a 
time of war, not criticizing and attacking them. The fact is that we 
spend much too little in keeping our promises to our servicemen and 
women who have retired, not too much.
  I hope we can see this kind of statement relegated to the back pages 
of mistakes made by administration officials. Together the leadership 
of this House should fight for veterans benefits in the months ahead, 
although I would say, Mr. Speaker, I am concerned that the House 
leadership recently fired rather than saluted the Republican chairman 
of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs in the House because he had stood 
up for veterans. Our veterans have stood up for us, let us stand up for 
them.

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