Harry Teague

Ladies and gentlemen, we all know the public lands of Dona Ana County are critically important to our economy and way of life in Southern New Mexico.

I believe that we as a Nation must establish and maintain operational control of our borders.

IAVA supports H.R. 3561, which would increase education benefits for veterans taking Flight School courses under the Montgomery GI Bill.

We must ensure that our veterans, who so selflessly served our country, are given the opportunity to succeed after their service.

I have introduced H.R. 2416, the 'Success After Service Act,' to increase the opportunities that are available to Veteran Owned Small Businesses.

I believe that this bill does exactly what this Subcommittee is supposed to be doing, creating economic opportunity for our veterans.

When that happens, it is up to us to exercise our constitutional authority and exercise our oversight powers.

Our constituents expect us to be responsible stewards of their tax dollars.

All veterans deserve to get the treatment we promised regardless of their gender.

It is frankly shameful that this bill needs to be enacted to get the VHA to act decently, honestly, and as common sense would dictate.

I do not think that forcing a veteran to take money out of his pocket or her pocket while they are accessing benefits that they have earned makes sense.

I believe that this measure is the least we can do for our Nation's veterans after they have given so much in defense of our country.

It was my honor and pleasure to introduce this bill and I believe that this legislation will provide some needed relief for the families who care for our Nation's veterans.

We have an obligation to help those who have defended our country by giving them the tools they need to rejoin the civilian workforce.

I simply think that it is wrong to expect someone who has served their country, and been injured as a result of that service, be penalized because we, as a government, are putting them back in uniform.

I believe that this bill represents something that we can always use more of in government, a little common sense.

This Budget allows us to do that and it also enhances the VA's suicide prevention campaign, an increasingly important program.

Like many of you, I think it's about time that we start doing as much for our veterans as they have done for us.

I would first like to applaud the Administration for proposing a budget that, for the first time, exceeds the amount requested by the Independent Budget of Veteran Service Organizations by at least $1 billion.

The proposals I have addressed would mean that wells would shut down, the bread winners in families in districts like mine would lose their jobs, and there would be that much more oil and gas that we would need to import from foreign…

I am particularly pleased that the President's proposed budget prioritizes the mental health needs of our veterans.

This budget will help us eliminate the shameful backlog of 400,000 veterans benefits claims and finally get those veterans the services and support they deserve.

Like many of you, I think it is about time that we start doing as much for our veterans as they have done for us.