Wayne Allard: “this week our Nation honored our veterans; the men and women who have served the United States with distinction.…”

“this week our Nation honored our veterans; the men and women who have served the United States with distinction. Although we take one day of the year to recognize what veterans have done for us, it is understood that we are in constant debt to those who defended our country's liberty. It is said that ``Freedom is not free''. There is a cost, and this cost has been paid by America's veterans. They have sacrificed for our country, and increasingly for our world. Around the globe, from Asia to Europe to the Middle East to right here at home, the millions of men and women who have served in our armed forces deserve as much honor and respect as we can give them. Knowing this, there is not one member of this body who would not want our veterans to receive benefits that they have earned. Unfortunately, the House and the Senate have chosen not to give full concurrent receipt to our veterans, and for this reason I did not sign the Conference Report to the Defense Authorization.”