Political Quotes

“I too am offering an amendment to bolster suicide prevention programs. I rise to offer an amendment which would provide additional resources for mental health programs for our Nation's servicemembers. Traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder have been consistently contributing to behavioral issues with our veterans, and all too often these ongoing mental health issues result in suicide. With an average of 18 to 20 veteran suicides per day, more resources are desperately needed. The DOD is already an expansive bureaucracy, and I appreciate the work of the committee to prioritize resources and to provide appropriation levels for the defensewide operations and maintenance that are actually lower than those in fiscal year 2015. My amendment takes a relatively small amount from that account--$1.5 million out of a $30.2 billion budget. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says the amendment would have no impact on budget authority or outlays. Too many of our men and women in uniform are struggling with traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of serving in combat. If you support improved mental health for our servicemembers, you should support this amendment. Let's prevent future suicides amongst our troops and ensure they are getting the help they need. I ask my colleagues to support this amendment. I thank the chairman and the ranking member for their time. Point of Order”