Political Quotes

“I rise to reintroduce the Veteran Voting Support Act, which is cosponsored by Senators Leahy, Durbin, and Reid. Almost 7 years ago, during the previous administration, I learned that a Department of Veterans Affairs facility in California had barred voter registration groups from accessing veterans in the facility. Similar reports emerged in other parts of the country. This was unacceptable. Therefore, then-Senator Kerry and I worked with the VA to establish a fair, nonpartisan policy to facilitate voter registration and voting for veterans who receive services at VA facilities. We held a hearing in the Rules Committee on a previous version of this bill on September 15, 2008, when I was Chairman of that committee. One week before that hearing, the VA issued a directive that created a new and substantially improved policy to permit state and local election officials, as well as nonpartisan groups, to access VA facilities. Yet many expressed concerns that it did not go far enough.…”