Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the chairman has asked me to manage the bill in the meantime while he is working out with the leadership a list of amendments. Seeing no other Senator who wants to speak at this point, if I may, then I will talk about an amendment that would be offered in the future. I am going to offer an amendment to repeal the offset in the Department of Defense and the VA benefits for military widows and widowers. The standalone bill, S. 260, has widespread support from military organizations and has 51 cosponsors in the Senate. This is the ninth time that I have and will bring this amendment to the Defense Authorization Act. It has passed the Senate six times over the past decade, including last year by voice vote. The Senate has supported eliminating this offset for years. I hope this body will remain steadfast in its support for military widows and survivors. The Presiding Officer will recall in a number of addresses that President Lincoln gave he spoke of the responsibility the government has to take care of the veteran and his widow and orphans. That is an ingrained principle within the law. That is an ingrained principle as we uphold the finest fighting force in the world, which is our military. What this amendment does is it addresses the longstanding problems faced by those survivors of people who are killed in action or whose death is related to the service in the military.…”