On the recordSeptember 12, 2012
I rise today to express my strong support for the Veterans Jobs Corps Act. I am proud to be a cosponsor of the bill. I would like to thank Senator Nelson for introducing the bill, and I would like to thank Senator Murray, chair of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, for bringing this bill to the Senate and for all she has done for our Nation's veterans. Veterans have done so much for our country, serving courageously in the military, and they have been tested so profoundly and so many times over the last decade. These men and women have done everything for us. We owe them. That means they deserve the best health care and other benefits they have earned from the Department of Veterans Affairs. And that means a home. Last weekend I was back in Minnesota for Habitat for Humanity, making critical home repairs for a Minnesota Guard veteran, SGT Brian Neill, and his family. Brian is a 23-year veteran of the National Guard, is part of the Minnesota National Guard unit, the legendary Red Bulls, who had their deployment in Iraq extended so that it was one of the longest, if not the longest, deployment in U.S. history. While Brian was in Iraq, his son was hit by a drunk driver while returning home from his junior ROTC training. He sustained a severe brain injury and is severely disabled. In Iraq, Brian, who mentored younger soldiers, saved the life of one of those solders. Brian, being a 23-year vet, mentored these young kids.…
