Political Quotes

“I thank the distinguished chairman and the distinguished ranking member and their staffs for their cooperation on this amendment. The amendment increases the funding for Veterans Treatment Courts by $1 million. I offered a similar amendment last year that the House also adopted on a voice vote. With the additional funds provided by this amendment, a total of $6 million would be available for such courts, which is still short of the $8 million Congress has authorized under the bipartisan Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act. Our Nation's heroes are returning home from more than a decade of war. Upon their return, they bear the visible and invisible wounds of deployment. Substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and various mental health disorders can lead our returning heroes down a difficult and often lonely path during their transition to civilian life. Twenty percent of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans suffer from post- traumatic stress disorder or major depression. One in six battle with substance abuse. Left undiagnosed or untreated, these illnesses can result in an encounter with the justice system. Worse yet, these illnesses can also lead to suicide, which veterans commit at twice the rate of our civilian population.…”