Political Quotes

“I wanted to say a few words about the conference committee in terms of legislation protecting the health of our veterans. We are working hard on it in the Senate, the House is working hard on it, and our staffs have been meeting. I have been in touch often with Chairman Miller in the House. We had, I thought, a very productive conference committee before we left. As we continue to proceed, if there is anything I have learned since I have been chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, it is that I think as a people, as a nation, we underestimate the cost of war, and before anyone votes to go to war again I think they should fully appreciate the repercussions of that vote. What going to war means is not--as in the case of Afghanistan and Iraq--losing some 6,700 brave men and women. That is a terrible loss, but I also want people to remember the families, the wives, the kids, the mothers, and the impact that loss has had on their lives and the need for us to protect those wives and those children to make sure they can have the quality of life they are entitled to despite their loss. But it is not only loss of life. We have had in this war a horrendous epidemic of men and women coming home with post-traumatic stress disorder.…”