On the recordNovember 14, 2011
Madam Speaker, this weekend many of us, probably all of us, honored our veterans. And they deserve the honors that we gave them. The Senate honored them with the passage of a COLA increase, which I hope our House will, too--and I'm sure it will--in a bipartisan fashion. In Memphis, I had a Veterans Day lunch, and so did our city mayors, and we honored Bobby Rush. Not the Bobby Rush of the United States Congress, but Bobby Rush, the great blues guitarist, singer, and guitar player; a blues legend in Memphis who has done much to honor veterans throughout this country. Bobby Rush has been the International Ambassador of the Blues, named by the State of Tennessee, and has traveled to Iraq, Kuwait, and Afghanistan to perform for our troops. He holds an annual Red, White and Blues Day Jam in Memphis to honor our veterans. When he visited Iraq, Bobby Rush said: I was just overwhelmed to witness the very real level of commitment and sacrifice they go through so that people like me and you can live our lives without feeling threatened. It is something that must not be forgotten or taken for granted. So as I did in Memphis last weekend and I do again today, I thank our veterans, and I thank Bobby Rush for taking his talents to entertain our troops and honor our veterans and be a great American. ____________________





