[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 23]
[Senate]
[Page 31526]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           VETERANS SPENDING

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, if the majority leader is not coming 
out, I will use a little of my leader time.
  Americans were shocked earlier this year to learn about the 
conditions at Walter Reed Medical Center, and Members of Congress were 
right to seize the moment by pledging to veterans they would do 
everything they could to give them what they need. As Speaker Pelosi 
put it, in the military, we always say: In battle, we will never leave 
a soldier in the battlefield; and we say when they come home, we will 
not abandon them, so we should have the best possible opportunities for 
them when they do come home.
  The veterans spending bill gave Speaker Pelosi and the rest of the 
Democrats in Congress an opportunity to make good on that pledge. So 
far, that opportunity has been squandered. The veterans bill was ready 
more than 2 months ago. It had overwhelming bipartisan support in both 
Chambers. The House version passed in June by a vote of 409 to 2, the 
Senate version passed in September by a vote of 92 to 1, and the 
President has been ready to sign it for weeks. What is the holdup? 
Democrats must have decided somehow it works to their advantage to hold 
onto this bill for political leverage. We know this because they 
attached it to a bill the President said he would reject, and which he 
did reject, and now it is back on the shelf and veterans are still 
waiting. Americans need to know what is going on. The majority is 
holding onto this bill which contains money for critical new programs 
for veterans returning from battle.
  There is still time to change course and we must. So I call on the 
majority to end this game. The fiscal year has come and gone without 
acting on this bill. Veterans Day passed without enacting the bill. Now 
is the time to take it off the shelf, blow the dust off, and get it to 
the President's desk for his signature before the Thanksgiving recess.
  The majority's strategy on this bill is meant to put pressure on 
President Bush, but all it is doing is putting pressure on our already 
strained VA and delaying critical help to veterans and their families. 
Troops are finally coming home from Iraq. They deserve better than this 
when they get here, remove their uniforms, and return to our 
communities.
  At this moment, 2 very good and worthy goals stand before us: Funding 
our veterans and getting funding for our troops in harm's way. We 
promised them we would do this with both the Gregg and Murray 
amendments earlier this year. We can achieve it before the recess. 
Republicans are ready. I would call on the Democrats to join us in 
achieving these good things before the recess.

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