Commander Reynolds, National Adjutant Wilson, Auxiliary Commander Wiley and leaders of the DAV and the DAV Auxiliary, it is a privilege for me to be in the same room with so many who have sacrificed so much in service to our country. I appreciate your giving me the honor of being with you today.

I am deeply grateful for your kind comments, I truly am, but let me be clear. I know who the real heroes are—and I am looking at them right now.

It is also good to be with my two colleagues, my friend Shelley Berkley, who is a passionate advocate in behalf of the veterans of Nevada and our country, and John Porter, my respected colleague on the House Budget Committee and a member of the Ways and Means Committee, which passes the taxes that we appropriators get to spend. I extend my thanks to both of you for giving me a passport to visit your great state.

The most important thing I want to say this morning is "thank you". As the son of a World War II naval aviator, who just passed away four months ago, and as the father of two young sons—aged 11 and 12, thank you for having made this world, through your military service, a better, safer place for my sons and my father's beloved grandsons. As a father, I know I can never fully repay my debt of gratitude to you for that.

Thank you also for continuing to serve our great nation after you have taken your uniform off. Since the aftermath of World War I, when America's veterans were treated so shabbily, the DAV has always been there to see that our nation never forgets the sacrifice of its veterans.

I am profoundly thankful that 34 years ago, two DAV Members took me under their wing; Congressman Olin E. "Tiger" Teague, who was the most decorated World War II veteran in Congress with three Silver Stars and Billy Kirby, a former DAV National Commander. They taught me one principle above all—that Americans have a moral obligation to keep their promises to those who have kept their promise to defend our nation.

When Congressman Teague, who was known as "Mr. Veteran" in Congress for over three decades, encouraged me to run for Congress years ago, he asked me to make one promise to him —that, if elected, I would never forget our veterans.

I do not make many promises, but the commitment I made that day to Mr. Teague, who is now buried next to Omar Bradley in Arlington National Cemetery, is one I intend to keep until the day I die.

Before I give you a legislative update, let me thank one more group represented here. I want to pay tribute to the spouses and children of our veterans, because I believe you are the unsung heroes of America's national defense. You might not have ever worn our nation's uniform, but you have surely served our nation through your personal sacrifice.

For fourteen years, I represented the largest U.S. Army installation in the world—Ft. Hood, Texas. Through two deployments to Iraq, I saw firsthand the daily sacrifices of our military families. I learned there are no make up days for missed births, birthdays, school plays and Little League ball games. And, I cannot even imagine the emotional strain, while your loved one is in harm's way, when every time the phone rang or someone knocked on your front door, you worried it could be the call that you hoped and prayed would never come. And, yes, I have seen first-hand young widows with infants in their arms and children who would never gaze into the eyes of their father. One cannot put a price tag on that kind of sacrifice, so to all of our military spouses and children, I salute you, and may God bless you.

I know that I can never adequately express in words my gratitude to all of you, but one thing I know for sure; when it comes to Congress and the Executive Branch, it is not good enough to thank you with our words on Veterans Day or at this convention. We have a moral obligation to honor you with our deeds.

That is why I am proud to make a bold pronouncement to you. It is a new day in Congress when it comes to honoring our veterans. You are no longer going to be honored with congressional speeches and dishonored with inadequate congressional budgets.

By working closely with the DAV, we are ensuring that America's veterans are treated with the dignity that you and your families deserve.

These are the facts.

Prior to 2007, for over a decade, VA budgets had left our veterans on a financial treadmill, barely keeping up with inflation and too often falling backwards regarding veterans’ health care and benefits.

The previous House Speaker, Dennis Hastert, a decent and honorable public servant, had, unfortunately, fired the Republican Chairman of the House VA Committee, Congressman Chris Smith, for having had the courage to say that the Republican budget did not adequately fund our veterans' needs.

Then, in 2006, Congress failed to pass a VA budget for fiscal year 2007, so the VA health care budget was frozen when the new Congress began in January of 2007. Given we were at war, with Iraq and Afghan war vets coming home and needing VA health care, and given health care inflation, our VA hospital budgets were strained to the breaking point, and corners were being cut in care. Our veterans deserved better than that.

The new Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, to many veterans an unlikely champion for vets, had made a commitment to our VSOs, including the DAV, that if she became Speaker, veterans health care and benefits would be the highest of priorities in Congress. By working with you and Senate Majority Leader Reid, Speaker Pelosi has kept her commitment.

Let me share with you what we have done, with their support, since January of 2007, when I became Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs.

First, we passed last year the largest increase in VA discretionary spending in the 77-year history of the Veterans Administration. In less than 12 months, we increased the VA budget by an unprecedented $11.8 billion. Over $10 billion of that funding went to improve health care for the 5.8 million veterans who need and deserve VA health care.

For the first time in the 21 year history of the VA Independent Budget, led by the DAV, the Congress met that IB budget level for VA health care in 2007

Second, we followed up that historic budget increase last year by passing just over a week ago through the House my FY 2009 VA bill, which increases VA funding by $4.6 billion, which is $2.9 billion above the President's budget request.

Let me put this in perspective. When we pass our FY 2009 bill in Congress, which I believe will happen next month, the new 110th Congress will have increased veterans' funding by more in 2 years than the previous Congress' did in 12 years. More in 2 years than the previous 12 years—a $16.4 billion budget increase for veterans in less than two years. You, the leaders of the DAV, should be proud of that historic accomplishment, because you were a partner with us every step of the way.

And, you know what? Our veterans have earned and deserve every dime of that funding.

In this process I have worked hard to put together my VA funding bills on a bipartisan basis, working closely with my Republican ranking Member, Zach Wamp of Tennessee. In fact, I am a poster child for bipartisanship—I am a Democrat that represents President Bush's home in Crawford, Texas and his father's Presidential library in College Station.

At the same time, let me say that the two budget resolutions last year and this year, which made possible these unprecedented VA funding increases, reflected priorities set by Democratic leaders in Congress. Both resolutions passed over the objections of the vast majority of Republicans in the House. I will show my bias here, but House Democrats believed that a country at war should make benefits and health care for veterans a higher priority than tax cuts for people making over $1 million a year.

The third thing we have done in the 110th Congress for veterans is to pass into law a new 21st Century GI Education Bill, which replicates the benefits of one of the finest pieces of legislation ever passed by any Congress—the 1944 GI Bill.

With these three accomplishments, I believe the new Congress in 2007 and 2008, with the DAV as our partner, has provided a larger increase for veterans' health care and benefits than any Congress in the history of our nation.

What does this overall, historic funding increase mean for America's veterans?

For 5.8 million veterans in the VA health care system, it means an increase of 15,000 VA health care workers, including 1,705 new doctors and 6,468 new nurses. That means more medical services, better care and shorter waiting times for doctors' appointments.

And, for the first time since 2003, when the Administration placed a cap on Category 8 veterans receiving VA health care, we will increase the income level for eligible veterans by approximately 10%. It just isn't right to say that a veteran in some parts of the country making $30,000 a year is too rich to deserve VA care.

For Iraq and Afghan war veterans, our budget means every one coming into the VA system is now tested for PTSD and the non visible forms of traumatic brain injury.

For the most severely wounded OEF/OIF vets, it means a first ever polytrauma center in the Southwest, in San Antonio, and modernized, improved polytrauma centers across the country.

For veterans from all wars with mental health issues, it means $3.8 billion a year dedicated to better mental health care services, a $1.6 billion increase in just two years. It is past time that we recognized that the mental wounds of war can often be as much a sacrifice as the physical wounds of combat.

For veterans in rural areas far away from VA hospitals, it has meant 78 new VA Community clinics. And for the first time since 1979, when gasoline was 94 cents per gallon, we have increased the veterans' mileage reimbursement rate from 11 cents to 41.5 cents per gallon. That might not seem like a big deal to some, but, as you know, for many veterans facing $4.00 a gallon gasoline costs, it is the difference between them even being able to afford to get the health care they need and have earned.

For veterans who have lost limbs in service to country, we provide $162 million for new, state of the art prosthetics.

For veterans, needing long term care, our budgets mean more state veterans nursing homes.

And let me say this, not one soldier, not one veteran, not one, should ever have to live in the squalid conditions that our soldiers faced at Walter Reed Army hospital's annex 18 last year. That is why we have put well over $1 billion in preventive maintenance for our VA hospitals and clinics.

For veterans suffering from diabetes, Gulf War syndrome or PTSD, these new budgets mean the first real increase in a decade for VA health care research.

For veterans wanting a better life for their families, the new GI bill means full public university tuition, $1,000 a month for living expenses and $1,000 a year for books and fees. It increases maximum benefits from $9,000 a year to over $18,000 a year. That is good for their families, and it good news for our nation's economic future.

For the nearly 400,000 veterans backlogged in the VA claims processing system, our budgets in the new Congress mean over 5,200 new case workers to reduce the unconscionable 6 month delay for those waiting to receive their earned benefits. You didn't tell Uncle Sam to wait six months when he called you to duty or combat, and it is wrong for combat wounded veterans to have to wait that long for their needed benefits.

It is also wrong that tonight in the land of the free and the home of the brave, well over 100,000 veterans will have no home in which to sleep. For thousands of those veterans, our doubling of the homeless per diem program and increases for health care and job training will mean the dignity of a roof over their heads and real hope for rebuilding their lives. None of us should sleep well until there is not one homeless veteran anywhere in America.

Finally, there are two things we did not put in my VA funding bill. We rejected a proposed increase of 88% for prescription drug co-pays and we said "no" to a $250 VA health care enrollment fee. They way I see it, you paid your enrollment fee when you put on our nation's uniform.

We have come a long way in just 20 months, and the DAV has been an instrumental part of these accomplishments. By working together, we haven't just improved veterans programs for one or two years, we have increased the VA baseline funding, which will benefit millions of veterans for decades to come.

But, we still need the help and leadership of the DAV. Last year the Administration threatened to veto our historic increase in VA funding, because they said it cost too much. And, now, just a few weeks ago, the Administration has said its funding request for FY 2009, $2.9 billion less than the level passed in my bill, is enough for our veterans. I couldn't disagree more strongly, and I salute the DAV for saying a week ago that it was "shocked" to hear the Administration suggest its lower funding request was adequate for veterans. Just as you helped us stare down the veto threat last year, and the Administration blinked, we need your help in passing our bill this year.

We need the DAV to send a clear message to the U.S. Senate that it should take action promptly in September on the FY 2009 VA appropriations bill. And let me mention one more point on that bill.

In the House just over a week ago, the Republican leadership tried to attach a 147 page, controversial energy bill to the FY 2009 VA appropriations bill. I will be glad to have a debate about energy, but a non-germane energy amendment has no place being put on the appropriations bill, during a time of war, that provides housing and training ranges for our troops and health care and benefits for our veterans. You helped us kill that amendment in the House, and please do the same in the Senate, so we can get this bill to the President's desk by October 1, the first day of the new fiscal year. Our troops and veterans deserve no less. Needed health care and benefits for veterans should not be delayed or put at risk by election year, non germane energy amendments.

What we have accomplished together over the past 20 months isn't just about programs and budgets. These bills are, above all, about respect—respect for the service and sacrifice of our veterans and their families.

Our work together is about the young father I met last month at Walter Reed hospital. He lost both of his legs in combat in Iraq. As he sat there in his wheelchair, talking to me and my sons with his young son in his lap, I could not help but be overwhelmed by the lifelong sacrifice this father had made to try to make the world a safer place for my two young sons and for all children. Our work is about seeing that that loving father does not have to give up the dreams he has for his child.

The humility of my legislative work in Congress is knowing that I can never fully repay the debt of gratitude I owe to this soldier and to all who have served our nation in uniform.

Yet, I believe supporting our veterans with deeds, not just words, is the right thing to do and the smart thing to do. It is right because we cannot break faith with those who have kept their promise to serve. And, it is smart because in an all volunteer military in a still dangerous world, we cannot recruit and retain the best and brightest unless we honor those who have already served.

Standing up for veterans isn't just about honoring the past, it is about securing our nation's future. Standing up for those who have stood up for us, shouldn't be a Republican issue or a Democratic issue, it should be an American issue.

Let us never forget that we are the land of the free because we are still the home of the brave. God bless you, and may God bless the land that we love.