Veterans Issues

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Every year, millions of Americans swear an oath "to protect the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic" fully knowing that they might be sent overseas to fight, to kill, and possibly to die to protect the interests of the United States. Then, when they return home, they are subjected to (arguably) the worst health care in this country, and they are - more often than not - treated worse than second-class citizens.

Let's take a look at how each political party views issues surrounding veterans issues:

Republicans on Veterans Issues

"We haven't met a veteran yet that we won't screw over" - Jon Stewart

While Republicans, cycle after political cycle, consistently make promises not to cut veterans’ benefits as they seek to manage the federal budget, their proposed legislation and budget projections indicate otherwise. For instance, their Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023 aimed to address the debt ceiling while implementing “common-sense spending reforms.” However, the goal to reduce federal spending to what it was in 2022 required cutting 8% to 9% from discretionary spending (excluding entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare). One of their proposed actions became a $2 billion cut to the Department of Veterans Affairs by rescinding unspent COVID-19 relief funding. So, while their promise was to spare veterans and defense spending, achieving that promise without significantly affecting veterans’ programs proved extremely challenging and does not appear to have been all that successful.

"You know how that rabbit feels going under your spinning wheels. Bright images flashing by like windshields towards a fly."

Democrats on Veterans Issues

"We haven't met a veteran yet that we won't screw over" - Jon Stewart

Democrats recognize the sacrifice made by our veterans and are committed to ensuring they receive the best quality of life upon returning home. They advocate for protecting and expanding benefits and services for veterans. They aim to honor the service of those who risked their lives for the U.S. overseas. While they support funding for veterans’ services, they have also raised objections to certain provisions in funding bills. For instance, in a recent vote (May 2023), House Democrats did not fully fund the VA (Veterans Affairs) leading to discussion about partisan interference in fulfilling obligations to our veterans.

"To live between the wars in our time, living in real time, holding the good times, holding on to yesterdays."

Libertarians on Veterans Issues

"The government saves a lot of money by worshipping our veterans instead of caring for them like they promised."

While Libertarians don't have a policy directly addressing veterans' issues, we do have a unified stance that is actually quite simple: make fewer veterans. Combining our policies of 'letting others live their lives as they see fit' and 'only defending when attacked', the Libertarian view is that most of the wars and proxy conflicts over the past several decades have been pursued more for corporate profit than for any real "defense of the nation" idealism. As a veteran myself, I have experienced going from being honored by our society as a hero for my acts of service to feeling like a burden on that society because I was "no longer useful". I was lucky because I had help. Some of my fellow veterans have not been so fortunate.

"We can go from boom to bust, from dreams to a bowl of dust. We can go from rocket's red glare down to 'Brother can you spare…' another war, another wasteland, and another lost generation."

Aside from social organization outposts like the V.F.W. and American Legion, there are very few veterans services within District 57. The only Veterans Administration clinic in the area, the Denton VA Clinic, is only open during business hours on weekdays, so any veteran within our district could potentially need to travel a significant distance (into Plano, Dallas, or Arlington) simply to receive the health care that they have earned, inadequate as it may be. That is unconscionable, and I want to help change that if I can.

A Personal Request

Now, I want to ask a personal favor from all of the other Doggies, Squids, Zoomies, and Leathernecks, not as a candidate but as a fellow veteran. Scope out the scuttlebutt of the other pogues. What are they saying about us? Are they saying anything at all? If they are, why are they saying it? Is it the same standard John Wayne bulls*** that every other non-veteran running for office has said for the last 200 years, or are they saying something that you can actually agree with as it relates to your own family and your fellow veterans?

When it comes to veterans' issues, I may not have been in the foxhole with you, but I've been where you are, and I know what you've gone through (or what you're going through). If you want to cast your vote for them, absolutely do so, but just be aware of who and what you're voting for with regard to veterans' issues.

Semper Fi!

Disclaimer: It's important to remember that views on veterans issues vary wildly, even within the three political parties, and while these situations are nuanced, these are, in my opinion, subjects to which the political parties provide sincerity merely in word but not in deed.