[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3612]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               VETERANS IN SOUTH LOUISIANA DESERVE BETTER

  (Mr. BOUSTANY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BOUSTANY. Mr. Speaker, last week, I was furious to learn veterans 
in south Louisiana must wait even longer to receive an upgrade to 
promised veterans' clinical services in Lafayette and Lake Charles due 
to bureaucratic incompetence--or something worse. After years of hard 
work, effort, and patience, the VA is pressing the reset button on 
these projects. This is unacceptable. I refuse to stand by and allow 
Washington to give false assurances of hope to those who fought so 
bravely for our country.
  As the Lake Charles American Press stated:

       It took the United States and its Allies only 45 months to 
     defeat the Axis powers of Germany, Japan, and Italy in World 
     War II. It's obscene that 46 months after the VA announced it 
     would open a clinic in Lake Charles, veterans are still 
     waiting for ground to be broken.

  Making broken promises like these to our Nation's veterans is 
shameful. I will continue to lead the fight to protect our veterans 
against the broken promises of the VA in Washington. I look forward to 
bringing specific concerns to Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric 
Shinseki's attention regarding this absurd incompetence.

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