Tim Ryan: “I served on that committee my last term in Congress. I sat on the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. And that gentleman…”

“I served on that committee my last term in Congress. I sat on the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. And that gentleman that you are speaking about had a relationship with the veterans that was unsurpassed. It was unbelievable. The veterans groups loved Mr. Smith. Loved him. And he advocated for them on their behalf as chairman of the veterans committee. You do not have to ask me or the 30-something Working Group; you do not have to ask us. Go talk to the head of the disabled veterans groups, go talk to the head of AMVETS, go talk to any single veterans group and they will tell you that they loved them, and he advocated for them, and he disagreed with not fully funding and providing mandatory funding for our veterans health care benefits.”