Political Quotes

“I am glad Senator Akaka from Hawaii is on the Senate floor. As chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, he has done terrific work on this bill. S. 1315 was reported out of committee 9 months ago--9 months ago. Senator Akaka has worked on a bipartisan basis to come up with a new set of benefits for our veterans, benefits that are long overdue to help those veterans who are returning from war and faced with serious medical challenges--to help them with housing, with education, and job training, and to right a wrong. Since World War II, we have realized those Filipinos who fought next to our soldiers in that war have not been treated fairly, and I want to thank Senator Akaka and Senator Inouye for their leadership in making certain the Filipinos who were there when we needed them in World War II have a chance in this bill to receive at least some benefit for that service. There were some 470,000 who originally served. There may be only 20,000 left. Time has taken its toll. But for those remaining veterans, we owe them a debt of gratitude, and we should compensate them for service rendered on behalf of the United States. President Franklin Roosevelt called on the Army of the Philippines to stand with us, and they did. They fought and many were wounded. Some died in the process. If the United States is going to be known as a country that remembers its friends, we should remember our friends in the Philippines.”