Mark Takano
Representative for California · Democratic · United States
“They should have to look in the eyes of our sailors who were on the USS Lincoln, our soldiers and our airmen and marines in the Middle East and tell them: Thank you for your service, but we are cutting your benefits.”
House of Representatives16 September 2026Source ↗
“House Republicans' posture this week--our last week of session before an unexpected recess--is honestly symbolic of their posture with veterans in this Congress. At every turn, the majority has ensured that veterans were at the end of their priority list, from benefits-cutting legislation to canceled oversight hearings.”
House of Representatives16 September 2026Source ↗
“Our own estimates now put that figure in excess of 17,000 foreclosures. Let's review how we got here. The unprecedented crisis of COVID-19 required action from the VA to prevent the loss of hundreds of thousands of homes.”
House of Representatives16 September 2026Source ↗
“Billions of dollars are going to private industry on the backs of veterans serving our country. Oracle isn't the only company getting rich or richer while the rest of America struggles with rising healthcare costs, expensive groceries, and sky-high gas prices.”
House of Representatives16 September 2026Source ↗
“However, last year, Secretary Collins, President Trump, and Elon Musk's DOGE abruptly ended the VASP program, giving veterans no notice that a critical lifeline for borrowers was being ripped away. The decision was for and celebrated by Chairman Bost and subcommittee Chairman Van Orden.”
House of Representatives16 September 2026Source ↗
“This victory belongs to them, but our work is not over until the Major Richard Star Act is signed into law. We have come too far, built too much momentum, and brought together too powerful a coalition to stop now. We must force the majority to act.”
House of Representatives16 September 2026Source ↗
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“In fact, VA spokesman Quinn Slaven recently stated, ``No changes are planned or imminent,'' and noted that the agency is still reviewing the proposed rule, which ``would need to undergo significant changes [emphasis added] prior to being finalized'' before any implementation could occur (Slaven, quoted in GovExec, June 16, 2026). We are also troubled that reductions to future VA disability compensation are being used to finance provisions such as the Major Richard Star Act, which addresses a military retirement inequity rooted in Department of Defense policy. Correcting a Title 10 obligation should not come at the expense of Title 38 benefits. We continue to support enactment of a clean and complete Major Richard Star Act that delivers full concurrent receipt to combat-injured retirees without reducing earned benefits for future veterans.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“If Congress establishes the precedent that disability ratings may be rewritten through statute to generate ``savings'', future Congresses will have a ready-made roadmap for reducing earned benefits whenever fiscal pressures arise. Disability compensation is not a government program to be trimmed when convenient. It is earned compensation for injuries and illnesses incurred in service to our nation. Some supporters argue that Congress is simply implementing changes previously proposed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. However, VA never finalized those proposals, largely due to receiving more than 2,600 comments raising concerns about the medical justification for the changes and their impact on future veterans.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Dear Chairmen Moran and Bost, and Ranking Members Blumenthal and Takano: As organizations representing millions of veterans, service members, survivors, caregivers, and military families of all generations, we have long worked with Congress to protect and strengthen the benefits and services earned through military service. For that reason, we do not support the funding mechanism within the Take Care of America's Veterans Act (H.R. 9237/S. 4744) that would significantly reduce future benefits for more than a million disabled veterans. The Veterans Affairs Schedule for Rating Disabilities is intended to reflect medical evidence, functional impairment, and scientific expertise, not serve as a budgetary offset.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a coalition letter from 10 veterans service organizations; a resolution from The American Legion Department of Texas; a statement from The American Legion, Trujillo-Sheets Post 28, in Durango, Colorado; and emails from Minnesota Blue Earth Post 89 of The American Legion and American Legion Post 58 in Belleville, Illinois, all in opposition to this bill. June 24, 2026. Hon. Jerry Moran, Chairman, Committee on Veterans' Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard Blumenthal, Ranking Member, Committee on Veterans' Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Mike Bost, Chairman, Committee on Veterans' Affairs, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Hon. Mark Takano, Ranking Member, Committee on Veterans' Affairs, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Any savings resulting from that process should be reinvested in improving disability evaluations, rehabilitation services, and veterans' healthcare--not used to finance unrelated provisions of the legislation.'' If my colleagues are suddenly interested in following that science, they should let the experts continue their work independently without the political pressure that passage of this bill will inevitably create. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Underwood), my good friend. She is a former member of this committee who currently serves on the House Committee on Appropriations.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“The architects of Project 2025 have been desperate to cut benefits for years, and they have been trying to find a way to touch veterans benefits. I am not going to let them do that. They even showed up at the majority's press conference to cheer on their efforts just a few short days ago, and now they finally have a majority who is willing to bow to their demands to harm veterans. {time} 0940 My majority counterparts have picked an interesting time to care about science again. Their remarks today attempt to demonstrate that they are working to align themselves with the best science to update and modernize the disability ratings schedule. Yet, my majority colleagues fail to see the irony in legislating away veteran benefits before VA completes a thorough review of the best science.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the chairman has said several times that the disability changes this bill makes are coming anyway. That is simply not true. He is counting on a golden egg that the VA has simply not laid yet. The first Trump administration floated changes to conditions like sleep apnea and tinnitus beginning in 2019. Then 4 years ago, when VA sought public comment on a notice of proposed rulemaking, the 2022 changes during the Biden administration, VSOs and many Members of this body spoke loudly and clearly and unanimously in opposition to them, and what he doesn't mention is that the Biden administration walked away from those proposed rule changes. The VA listened to those voices in 2022, and as a result, the proposed rule has been on a shelf since then.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“How could Republicans propose this.'' I couldn't have said it any better, and there are thousands more comments just like this as you can see here. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“What is in short supply, at least on the other side of the aisle, is the political will to use some of it on behalf of America's veterans. There is $1.5 trillion for the Department of Defense, $70 billion for the Department of Homeland Security, and hundreds of millions of dollars for permanent tax cuts for the wealthy, none of it offset, and all of which the chairman voted for enthusiastically. Just 10 days of President Trump's folly in Iran would pay for 10 years of benefits under the Major Richard Star Act. Let me say that again. Just 10 days of President Trump's folly in Iran would pay for 10 years of benefits under the Major Richard Star Act. The question we have before us today is this: Why do you insist on offsets now? Why only now when we are trying to do work on behalf of our Nation's veterans do you care about the deficit?”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“There are parts of this bill with broad bipartisan support: long overdue increases to dependency and indemnity compensation and a special monthly compensation, for example. We do not exist in isolation here, and we must take the bill as the total sum of its parts, especially since the majority has blocked amendments to this bill, as they have done so often in this Congress. {time} 0930 Regrettably, we will also hear the chairman say that cutting veterans' benefits is the only way that we can get them done. This is patently false, and the chairman knows it. Everyone in this Chamber knows it, and everyone in America knows it, as well. There are any number of other places we can find money for these priorities. We don't lack money around here.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“This bill also contains numerous sections opposed by key stakeholders, like Student Veterans of America, Veterans Education Success, and the American Federation of Teachers, that would direct GI Bill funding toward low-quality, for-profit, unaccredited online programs. This bill contains provisions that would allow GI benefits to be used for online welding courses. Can you believe it? Explain to me how you can teach someone online how to weld. Inexplicably, H.R. 9237 even includes a $500 million IT slush fund that VA will use to enrich contractors and reward the President's cronies. The list goes on and on. We are going to hear arguments from the majority today about all the good things this bill attempts to do. If we exist in a vacuum, I would say that I agree.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Yet, they insist on paying for veterans' priorities by cutting benefits with the two most common service-connected conditions. Apparently, there is no problem sending veterans the bill for the wars that Congress funds. This is a massive 600-page bill--crafted behind closed doors and brought to the floor without careful consideration--packed with harmful provisions designed to boost a few vulnerable Members' electoral prospects. Mr. Speaker, for those reasons and many, many more, I cannot in good conscience support this legislation. More important than my opposition is the opposition of the very people whom the majority claims to help, the veterans themselves.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“That is rationing suffering among our Nation's heroes. With this bill, the majority would, for the first time ever, have Congress interfere in the scientific process that the determines veterans' disability ratings, overriding the expertise of medical professionals at the Department of Veterans Affairs. I respect that Chairman Bost is a military veteran, but he is not a medical professional. The majority, for the first time ever, would have us cut tens of billions of dollars from veteran disability compensation to pay for the Department of Defense obligations. This is absolutely unconscionable. Consider the math. Republicans are discussing nearly $70 billion in new Pentagon spending without offsets. They vote enthusiastically for $1.5 trillion in annual defense budgets.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 9237. It is a beautiful day here in Washington, D.C., but Republicans are casting a dark cloud over all of us and especially over America's veterans. We have before us today a bill that, despite its name, does the exact opposite of taking care of veterans. It enshrines into law the largest cut to veterans' benefits ever in the history of this Nation. The premise of this bill is that some veterans must be made worse off in order to make others better off. Mr. Speaker, I reject that premise, I reject this bill, and I encourage others to do the same. Here is the core issue: The majority treats veterans as a zero-sum game: cut disability pay for some to find benefits for others. That is not governing.”
House of Representatives16 July 2026Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn. The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 7 o'clock and 45 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until tomorrow, Thursday, May 1, 2025, at 9 a.m. ____________________”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“They are evidence of a pattern, a government operating outside the law, outside the Constitution, outside the decision of a Supreme Court that has ruled 9-0 that this administration must facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a government that believes that it can disappear people without charges, ignore the judiciary, and turn the Constitution into a suggestion rather than a safeguard. Mr. Speaker, this body must exert its collective conscience. This is not who we are, and it must not be who we become. The American people are beginning to wake up. They are hungry for accountability from our government and courage from Congress. I promise this. This is not the end of our voices. It is only the beginning. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“They have never been able to defend themselves against charges that they are Tren de Aragua criminals or otherwise dangerous criminals. This is a travesty. I think all Americans should be outraged. All Americans should be afraid for themselves. We have now seen, in just recent days, that we have moved from noncitizens to citizens being sent out of this country. Mr. Speaker, I want to say that, over the last hour, the American public has heard directly as Members of Congress came to this hallowed floor to talk plainly about the grave constitutional crisis unfolding in our country. We have heard the names Kilmar Abrego Garcia and Andry Hernandez Romero. We have spoken of students taken off streets, court orders cast aside, and a supermax prison that now holds victims of abuse. These are not isolated incidents.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“My understanding not only was that he was seeking asylum from Venezuela because of his sexual orientation but also because he would not comply with the authoritarian regime there. Is that your understanding, as well?”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Garcia) for the purpose of a colloquy. Representative Garcia, I had not heard the story about your request to the Ambassador to do a welfare check. This is one picture of Andry Hernandez. I have seen other pictures of him, other photographs. It is hard for, I think, anyone who looks at these photographs to believe that Andry is a dangerous member of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang. Here is the other fact that was just mentioned. He has never once been at large in the U.S. territory, any part of the U.S. Government, or the Continental United States. From the very beginning, when he crossed the border, he was in custody. He has never been out of custody. He has never once posed any danger. He arrived with papers that show, from his native Venezuela, that he has no criminal record.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Chu for bringing to light the story of an individual who has contributed much to his community. I am very disappointed, alarmed, and, frankly, terrified by the actions of this administration. Mr. Speaker, I yield time to the gentleman from California (Mr. Garcia), also a fellow Californian, a longtime friend of mine, and somebody who I admire for his courage and initiative in leading a recent delegation of four Members of Congress to the country of El Salvador.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Tokuda for her comments. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Chu), my fellow colleague from southern California and good friend.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for standing up for the rule of law. Mr. Speaker, I remind my colleagues that, in this country, under our Constitution, no one is above the law, not even the President. Our President, at this very moment, is defying a 9-0 Supreme Court decision. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Hawaii (Ms. Tokuda), my colleague from the Aloha State.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“How can you say to a judge that you are a citizen or not a criminal when you are not even allowed to have that hearing? Mr. Speaker, I will now move on and yield to the gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Hoyle).”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Watson Coleman for informing the Nation about what happened earlier today with that family in Oklahoma. It strikes me that we are witnessing this evolution of this administration's policies that began with: We are just going to deport criminals. It then evolved into disappearing people without hearings and claiming that the people they were disappearing were criminals, dangerous criminals, members of the Tren de Aragua gang. They admitted that there were mistakes made, but now we are seeing actual children who are citizens being spirited out of the country. This ought to be concerning to all Americans. It is not about them anymore. It is about us. It is about every single person who is in danger of being treated in such a way that you have no way to say to a judge: I am a citizen.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Tonko for his comments. I agree with the gentleman. This is a red line that cannot be crossed. We cannot permit a President to defy a 9-0 order of the Supreme Court. No person and no man is above the law. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from New Jersey (Mrs. Watson Coleman), my tremendous colleague.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Rivas for her comments and bringing to light the tragic stories of children who are citizens with cancer being deported from our country. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Tonko).”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, the sign behind me says ``9-0.'' ``9-0'' is the order of the Supreme Court. They ruled 9-0 that Kilmar Abrego Garcia must be brought back or must be facilitated back into the country. This 9-0 Supreme Court order is being defied by the President. No one in our country, no person, no man, is above the law. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Randall). {time} 1915”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Ansari. I want to thank her for traveling with three other of our colleagues to El Salvador last week. I know that she traveled at her own expense. I am very proud that we have members of this caucus who care so deeply about people who have been treated so unjustly. Nobody should be disappeared out of our country without habeas corpus hearings. I also thank Representative Carter for his efforts, along with, I believe, other Members of Congress to visit the graduate students held in a New Orleans jail. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. Omar).”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Louisiana for his principled remarks about the importance of the rule of law in our country and his enunciating that political dissent in our country is not a crime. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Arizona (Ms. Ansari).”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Ramirez for standing up for the rule of law. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Carter.)”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Escobar for her comments. I am outraged to hear that Republicans on the Judiciary Committee would not protect citizens from deportation. We are talking about citizens. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Ramirez). {time} 1900”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“I call on President Trump to free Andry. There are so many others to talk about: students who have been snatched off the streets, young American citizens kicked out without so much as a hearing, and the list goes on and on. I want to be clear that this is not just about immigrants. This is bigger than that. If the government can violate the Constitution with impunity in these cases, then it can do so anywhere to anyone. To the Americans listening at home, I ask you: How would you feel if masked men grabbed you in broad daylight and refused to show their ID? I know I would be terrified, and I bet you would be, too. Today, we will hear from a number of my Congressional Progressive Caucus colleagues as we bring a spotlight to these injustices. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Escobar).”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“I want to take the opportunity to draw attention to another case that has captured the public conscience, that of Andry Jose Hernandez Romero, a 31-year-old gay Venezuelan makeup artist and asylum seeker who was forcibly disappeared without due process. Andry entered the United States legally, fleeing persecution for his sexual orientation and political beliefs. He passed an initial asylum screening and had no criminal record. Yet, without warning or due process, he was forcibly removed to El Salvador and imprisoned in the notorious CECOT facility. What is the evidence against him? A couple of crown tattoos above the names ``Mom'' and ``Dad,'' symbols of his love for his hometown's Three Kings Day celebrations. Andry's case exemplifies the dangers of unchecked executive power and what happens when the rule of law is pushed aside.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I rise to address the House for a Special Order hour with my Congressional Progressive Caucus colleagues. I do so on the 100th day of the Trump administration, and I note that this is a day when we received the news that our economy has contracted and that we are witnessing confusion, chaos in our markets, and uncertainty about our economic future. We can also mark this day by stating that our country is in the midst of a constitutional crisis. The administration is disappearing individuals without due process in defiance of court orders. They are ripping people from their homes and communities, putting them on secretive flights, and sending them overseas, including more than 280 individuals sent to the brutal CECOT prison in El Salvador without so much as a hearing.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the Record.”
House of Representatives30 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I yield myself the balance of my time for the purpose of closing. Mr. Speaker, I ask all my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 970, the Fairness for Servicemembers and Their Families Act, and I yield back the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Strickland), my good friend and author of this bill. She currently serves on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the House Committee on Armed Services.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“To ensure that we are not waiting another decade or more to improve this benefit for our servicemembers and veterans, my good friend Representative Marilyn Strickland has introduced this bill which requires the VA to periodically review coverage amounts every 5 years and report to Congress what the level of benefits would be if adjusted for inflation over that period. This will allow Congress to regularly make a more informed decision about whether or not these maximum coverage amounts should be increased. Mr. Speaker, this is commonsense legislation that allows Congress to better do our job to support servicemembers, veterans, and their families. This legislation passed the House last Congress, and I encourage my colleagues to support it once again. Mr. Speaker, I now yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from the State of Washington (Ms.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my support for H.R. 970, the Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2025. Mr. Speaker, just a few short years ago we increased the maximum coverage amount under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program and the Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI) program from $400,000 to $500,000. Prior to that, however, those maximum coverage amounts had not been increased since 2005, clearly failing to keep pace with inflation.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, I ask all my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 877, the Deliver for Veterans Act, and I yield back the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“This bill from Representative Moylan builds upon that work by simplifying the process for veterans who require their adaptive vehicle to be shipped. This includes veterans who live in areas such as Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Again, I support the substance of this bill, but I think we should have a very serious conversation about the majority's choice to perpetuate cutting veterans' pensions. I believe that we should include this item in any negotiations with the Senate before this bill becomes law. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues in the House and Senate to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my support for H.R. 877, the Deliver for Veterans Act. This bill would make it easier for disabled veterans to obtain the adaptive automobiles they are entitled to through their service-connected disability. If signed into law, this bill could save veterans tens of thousands of dollars on shipping costs of vehicles. Two Congresses ago, we passed the Veterans Auto and Education Improvement Act, a bill authored by Ranking Member Mike Levin and Representative Lizzie Fletcher, which expanded the adaptive auto benefit for veterans, allowing them to get a new vehicle if 10 years have passed since last using the benefit.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Budzinski), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Technology Modernization.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Speaker, again, I support the substance of this bill, but I think we should have a very serious conversation about the majority's choice to perpetuate cutting veterans' pensions, and I believe that we should include this item in any negotiations with the Senate before this bill becomes law. Mr. Speaker, with those concerns in mind, I support this legislation and ask my colleagues to do the same. I reserve the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“However, given that this administration, with the enabling of a feckless Republican-led Congress, has been working overtime to hollow out VA, we must rethink whether or not it is appropriate to continue its use. Aside from the moral failing of cutting one veterans' benefit to pay for another, VA's pension programs are designed specifically to support the poorest and sickest veterans and their survivors. Therefore, this continued reduction in pension payments poses real risks when the other services these veterans might need to fall back on are also being cut. Mr.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“The bill also sets deadlines for action: The VA must contract with a Federally Funded Research and Development Center, or FFRDC, to evaluate these communications within 30 days of the bill's enactment and submit its recommendations within 90 days. This effort aims to streamline the claims process and reduce the stress and confusion many veterans face when dealing with their benefits. Mr. Speaker, in spite of my support for the substance of this measure, I want to raise concern with the majority's choice to offset the cost of this bill by continuing to divert pension payments from the oldest and most sick veterans in VA's system. I understand that this offset has been used in the past and has existed in some form since the 1960s.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I yield myself the balance of my time to close. Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 586, the Vietnam Veterans Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Slashing these benefits, particularly when other support systems are also under threat, poses a significant risk for those who rely on them most. I recognize that this offset has been employed historically and in some form since the 1960s. However, in light of this administration's ongoing efforts, enabled by a complacent Republican-led Congress, to systematically weaken VA, we must reevaluate whether it remains appropriate to rely on this offset. I believe it would be prudent to discuss with the Senate whether a more appropriate offset can be identified before this bill becomes law. Mr. Speaker, with those caveats I have identified, I support this legislation, and I ask my colleagues to do the same. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“Vietnam war veterans deserve answers about their health and access to the best treatments. Under this administration's chaotic and damaging workforce cuts across all sectors of government, it will be harder than ever to get these answers. I will support this bill today, but I urge my colleagues to consider that implementation of this bill will be harder than it needs to be in the new CDC workforce realities that we are now in. These workforce cuts have real and lasting consequences, including for our veterans. In addition, while I support the underlying goals of this measure, I must express concern over the majority's decision to offset its cost by diverting pension payments from some of the VA's oldest and sickest veterans. The VA pension programs exist specifically to assist our most vulnerable veterans and their survivors.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗
“I certainly understand why Vietnam war veterans would be concerned about their exposure to this disease and believe we should do everything possible to ensure veterans have access to care and treatment for diseases they may have been exposed to as a part of their service. However, I must note that the context in which we are considering this legislation is vastly different than the last time the bill was considered by the House just under 7 months ago. In fact, under Secretary Kennedy's leadership in the past week, the CDC, or Centers for Disease Control, has cut 18 percent of its workforce. Many of these roles have been in global and environmental health roles, which means the individuals in offices best suited to assist with the requirements of this bill may no longer even exist at the CDC.”
House of Representatives7 April 2025Source ↗