Political Quotes

“like many of my colleagues, I am very proud to support the Veterans Jobs Corps Act of 2012. Very simply, this measure keeps faith with our veterans, offers them employment opportunities commensurate not only with what they have given to the country, what they have served and sacrificed to accomplish and give back, but also with their skills and talents and gifts that have been enhanced and enlarged by their military service. This measure addresses the chronic and persistent problem of unemployment among our young veterans. It is a searing indictment of our Nation that unemployment among these young veterans is many percentage points higher than the average population. What is happening in this country is that a new generation is returning home--a new generation of veterans ready to work, wanting to serve in civilian life just as they had in the military. With the ending of the war in Iraq and the winding down of our presence in Afghanistan, 200,000 servicemembers are transitioning to the civilian workforce every year. In July 2011 there were 232,000 post-9/11 era veterans unemployed. That is 12.4 percent as an unemployment rate. The August jobs report of this year shows that the most recent unemployment rate for post-9/11 veterans is 10.9 percent, and for Connecticut it is just under 10 percent.…”