You and I both know: Our veterans are the real American idols. That’s why delays in access to care and wait lists are not only a systemic problem nationwide – they are a national disgrace. We can’t afford to lose focus on this issue. Here’s what I’m working on:

• If the VA cannot provide timely medical care to our veterans, then we need to get them care at a private doctor. I supported a bill to do just that, which passed unanimously in the House (Read: H.R. 4810).
• Holding the Deptartment of Veterans Affairs accountable isn’t optional - it’s essential. I supported a bill to allow any senior bureaucrat at the VA to be fired or demoted for poor performance (Read: H.R. 4031).
• Our heroes deserve better than backlogs and bureaucracy. I supported a bill to evaluate the underlying causes of the severe claims backlog that is plaguing the Veterans Benefits Administration and to create commonsense solutions to help reduce or eliminate the backlog (Read: H.R. 2189).

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Last night, the House of Representatives passed legislation to extend in-state tuition rates to Veterans who are attending public universities or colleges on the Post-9/11 GI Bill, regardless of whether they have been stationed in a state long enough to establish residency. While the Senate must now take up this legislation, I was pleased to see this bill pass the House in an overwhelmingly bipartisan fashion. As my friend and Chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Congressman Jeff Miller said, "The men and women who serve this nation did not just defend citizens of their own home states but the citizens of all 50 states," and it’s not only a privilege, but a duty, to recognize them in all 50 states.

Commissaries are a vital recruitment and retention tool, essential to maintaining our all-volunteer military. Even more than that, though, commissaries represent a part of our commitment to taking care of our servicemembers during and after their time of service to the United States of America. Not only are they beneficial to active duty and retirees, but also to their families, who sacrifice so much for our nation. While military members are deployed for long stretches of time, their loved ones back home can still enjoy the services that the commissaries and exchanges provide. Click below to watch the speech I gave on the House Floor, opposing any efforts to close down our commissaries.

 The men and women who volunteer to serve our nation are not the cause of our current fiscal crisis. Proposals asking them to carry the weight of solving it are unacceptable.

I am also strongly opposed to any changes to military compensation that would break-faith with the men and women who wear the uniform of this nation. That’s why I cosponsored H.R. 3790, bipartisan legislation to restore the full cost-of-living adjustment for military retirees. I also supported H.R.3547, which was signed into law earlier this month.  It exempts all veterans who medically retire, those who receive Combat Related Specialty Compensation, those who receive Concurrent Receipt Pay, and surviving spouses in receipt of payments under the Survivor Benefit Program from the COLA adjustments. Additionally, while no changes will take effect until 2015, it is my hope that Congress will act quickly to pass both these bills and honor our servicemembers by ensuring they receive the benefits they deserve. Read more about my work on similar issues, here.