Beto O'Rourke

You just want to make sure that there's absolute adherence to the standards--that you don't have fraud.

I just want to make the point that thanks to the GAO, I think there are some significant concerns that have been raised.

I think academic affiliations make a lot of sense, and I would like to better understand the authorities that Dr. Jesse and the VA are going to ask for.

I think we can implement the reforms, but if you're not going to hold your employees accountable, I think... that would be a concern for me.

I would agree with everything you just said. And I would add that we then also need to hold ourselves accountable.

I have no other speakers on this amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

I claim the time in opposition to the amendment, although I am not opposed to it. The Acting CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman from Texas is recognized for 5 minutes. There was no objection.

The gentleman from Texas says that the MQ-9 Reaper is not specifically addressed in this amendment. However, UAVs are--unmanned aerial vehicles--and the MQ-9 is one of them. The point that I am trying to make is that we do not need to…

I inquire as to how much time remains on my side. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from Texas (Mr. O'Rourke) has 3 minutes remaining.

At this time I do not have a speaker, so I reserve the balance of my time.

I have no speakers at this time. I yield back the balance of my time.

I can't think of a more important issue for us to be working on, and I think that is reflected in your leadership.

I want to know what it will take to be able to see each one of those 17 veterans.

Until it is a stated priority, we are not going to see the changes that we need to see; we are not going to prioritize prevention.

But many in Washington just refuse any single attempts and efforts. That is one reason the system bogs down.

please do not sacrifice the civil rights of our home, of our community, of our people.

the border is home. It is home to me and it is home to millions of others.

Beto O'Rourke out of El Paso, he and I worked on a couple of bills, and we felt like we should show that Democrats and Republicans are working together.

I thank my friend from Texas, amidst all this heat and the rhetoric around Mexico, our relationship with that country, the cost or benefit of immigration, that he is able to shed some light using the facts, sharing the truth, so that we…

I invite my colleagues who have used the excuse--because they believe it--that we must first secure the border before we can do anything else, before we can improve our relationship with Mexico, before we can capitalize on the shared…

To listen to some in this country, and certainly some of my colleagues, Mexico represents nothing more than a threat to the well-being, the safety of this country, and to every son and daughter in every community within the United States…

I really appreciated your opening comments and the harkening back to the spirit of innovation and leadership that allowed the VA to develop VistA.

I think it is critical that we ask those veterans not physically in the VA because there are many who could not get an appointment.

Dr. Shulkin mentions in the article the need for the VA to focus on those conditions and disabilities and illnesses that are connected to military service and to combat.

Thank you for being there, for making the commitment to our community, and we really appreciate TriWest having an operation center that is hiring veterans in El Paso.