Lynn C. Woolsey: “A few weeks ago when we sat down to turkey dinner with our families, we certainly had plenty to be thankful for. Our…”

“A few weeks ago when we sat down to turkey dinner with our families, we certainly had plenty to be thankful for. Our thoughts, however, were thinking about the men and women of the Armed Forces, both active duty and retired, who have risked life and limb for all of us, and these folks, these troops, were in our prayers of thanks and in our hopes. But, Mr. Speaker, it is critical that our gratitude to these courageous Americans be expressed not just with kind thoughts around the Thanksgiving table or speeches on Veterans Day. We need to show our thanks with deeds, not words, which is why it was important last week that the House passed the Physician Payment and Therapy Relief Act, ensuring that seniors and military families continue to see their doctors. But even as we were taking that important step, military health benefits continue to be endangered, because Defense Secretary Gates is considering a proposal to increase the amount that military retirees pay for their health insurance under the TRICARE program. Let me be clear: I couldn't agree more with Mr. Gates's belief that the Pentagon is overextended.”