Date: 2014-06-18
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman. and I certainly appreciate the gentlemans very expansive assessment on the two underlying bills that we are about to address today. Let me. first of all. say that I live in a community of a very major veterans hospital. In fact. I carried the legislation to name it after Dr. Michael E. DeBakey. who created the MASH units in World War II. We care about veterans. as do my colleagues across the aisle in both the House and the Senate. I believe that it is important to move the Veterans Access to Care Through Choice. Accountability. continue through the process. and to make sure that our veterans. after the many audits that we have received on the individual hospitals. know that there is a long period of time for those veterans newly accessing veterans health care. Who does that include? That includes the recent returnees of Afghanistan veterans or Iraq veterans or even those veterans who have maintained good health and now find themselves in senior years. such as Vietnam veterans. and are coming to the system for the first time. It is intolerable for them to have to wait. I believe this is a very important initiative. If we are to send soldiers overseas or in the line of battle. as many are promoting now in light of the violence in Iraq. can we not without shame stand and provide them the kind of health care for them and their families? I rise as well to comment on the Department of Defense Appropriations Act. and I am glad that there has been attention to PTSD. I intend to offer an amendment addressing resources for PTSD and resources for the epidemic of breast cancer among military women in the Appropriations Act. But I do think it is important that again we have a prohibition against the transfer of Guantanamo detainees to the United States. That means that this facility continues to be open. Then. of course. we have appropriations for the overseas contingency operations. for which the President has not yet made a request. But I think in the context of providing an increase in wages for our military personnel. I congratulate the chairman and ranking member for working so cooperatively. But I raise a point in the backdrop of the crisis in Iraq. the ISIS. and all of the disjangled chords of calling for troops on the ground and to do airstrikes when in actuality we live in a world family. we live in a family with Saudi Arabia. Kuwait. and Jordan. we live in a family with NATO alliances. and we need to be able to work together to demand why an untoward leader in Iraq. who was given an opportunity for a consensus government. never made any effort. Yes. these individuals are horrific. they are radicalized. they are vicious. they are vile. But there are Sunnis and Shiites who have worked together. there are Sunnis who are moderate. who want to be in the government. who want their children to have an opportunity for education. they want their young people to have jobs. they want an Iraq where they can pledge allegiance to their flag. a united Iraq. Where was the leadership. the selfish leadership of Maliki. to be able to do thatand now we must clean up his dirty kitchen? I think not.