Political Quotes

“I come to the floor to speak about the nominee for Secretary of Veterans Affairs that we will be voting on in a couple of hours. I have long considered myself a friend of veterans. The men and women who have put themselves in harm's way to serve our country, they deserve our full support, and they have mine. Too often, I hear from veterans in Iowa that the Department of Veterans Affairs makes it difficult for them to access healthcare and the services that we honor them with because they have defended our country. Whether this is expecting them to drive an unnecessary distance for their initial disability exam or making it more difficult to seek the care that they choose outside of the VA system, our veterans deserve much better. The VA needs to do better, which brings me to former Representative Doug Collins, President Trump's nominee to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Representative Collins, a veteran himself, recognizes the challenges veterans face with the VA. During his time in the House of Representatives, he was a supporter of giving veterans the choice on where to seek healthcare. He and I agree that the VA needs to do better by our veterans and taxpayers alike. This became more obvious to the public last year when the VA misled Congress by claiming the Department was going to face a shortfall in funding but, in fact, ended the fiscal year with a surplus--can you believe this?--in the billions.…”