Angie Craig: “I wish to discuss my opposition to two bills reported by the Veterans' Affairs Committee, but I continue to hope we can…”

“I wish to discuss my opposition to two bills reported by the Veterans' Affairs Committee, but I continue to hope we can resolve the concerns I will address today. Unanimous consent has been sought to pass two controversial bills: S. 1233, the Veterans Traumatic Brain Injury and Health Programs Improvement Act, and S. 1315, the Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act. Although both bills are well-intended, they contain unacceptable provisions that I believe would be detrimental to the care our returning wounded warriors deserve and currently receive at VA facilities. At the very least, these provisions are controversial enough to merit considerable floor debate, and therefore I have no alternative but to oppose the unanimous consent agreement. In the past, the Veterans' Affairs Committee has worked in a bipartisan fashion to settle differences at the committee level and avoid taking up Senate floor time to debate and amend significant veterans legislation. Unfortunately, that is not the case with S. 1233 and S. 1315. Even so, I do not want to close the door on these bills because each has numerous provisions that I support or have sponsored in the past.”