State of the Union speech AWOL on troops and veterans

Let me make this perfectly clear from that start that President Obama has done a lot for veterans in his first two years. I know they matter to him just as much as the troops do and so do readers of this blog keeping track of all the changes at the same time you've read about how much more needs to be done. You've read about the suicides, arrests, struggles they face and too many heartbreaking stories to know all is not well for them. With Iraq and Afghanistan almost 2 million have been added to the veteran count but as they wait for the care this nation promised, their numbers have been reduced on the flip side because the care was not already waiting for them.

I understand this nation has big problems that need to be addressed. We need jobs and this I know all too well because I have been without a steady paying job since 2008. On health insurance reform we need to know that we cannot be canceled because of preexisting illnesses. This I know because it was one of my brother's greatest fears when he lost his job and less than a week later he died from a massive heart attack at the age of 56. Back in college I know the need for financial aid to help cover the cost of a college education. There is much this nation has to do and much that has been done but just as there is much to be proud of that sense of pride should accept absolutely no excuses for not taking care of our veterans.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release January 25, 2011

Remarks by the President in State of Union AddressUnited States Capitol, Washington, D.C.



Look to Iraq, where nearly 100,000 of our brave men and women have left with their heads held high. American combat patrols have ended, violence is down, and a new government has been formed. This year, our civilians will forge a lasting partnership with the Iraqi people, while we finish the job of bringing our troops out of Iraq. America’s commitment has been kept. The Iraq war is coming to an end.

Hold their heads up high? How do they do that when they come home and then have to fight to have a claim approved, wait for months or years while they have no income to live on? How do they hold their heads up high when they are able, willing and ready to work but cannot find a job? How do they do that when the rest of the nation has been able to forget all about the fact there have been two wars going on but if you ask the average American they have no clue about any of what has been going on? They did their jobs but we haven't done ours'.

We’ve also taken the fight to al Qaeda and their allies abroad. In Afghanistan, our troops have taken Taliban strongholds and trained Afghan security forces. Our purpose is clear: By preventing the Taliban from reestablishing a stranglehold over the Afghan people, we will deny al Qaeda the safe haven that served as a launching pad for 9/11.

Thanks to our heroic troops and civilians, fewer Afghans are under the control of the insurgency. There will be tough fighting ahead, and the Afghan government will need to deliver better governance. But we are strengthening the capacity of the Afghan people and building an enduring partnership with them. This year, we will work with nearly 50 countries to begin a transition to an Afghan lead. And this July, we will begin to bring our troops home.

In Pakistan, al Qaeda’s leadership is under more pressure than at any point since 2001. Their leaders and operatives are being removed from the battlefield. Their safe havens are shrinking. And we’ve sent a message from the Afghan border to the Arabian Peninsula to all parts of the globe: We will not relent, we will not waver, and we will defeat you.

Most of the men and women becoming veterans in the last few years entered into the military because of 9-11 but our support of them when they needed us has wavered, yet we call them heroes and brave, worthy of our praise but not our devotion.

Tonight, let us speak with one voice in reaffirming that our nation is united in support of our troops and their families. Let us serve them as well as they’ve served us -- by giving them the equipment they need, by providing them with the care and benefits that they have earned, and by enlisting our veterans in the great task of building our own nation.

Our troops come from every corner of this country -– they’re black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American. They are Christian and Hindu, Jewish and Muslim. And, yes, we know that some of them are gay. Starting this year, no American will be forbidden from serving the country they love because of who they love. And with that change, I call on all our college campuses to open their doors to our military recruiters and ROTC. It is time to leave behind the divisive battles of the past. It is time to move forward as one nation.

Saying we support our troops and their families is not the same as doing it. "Enlisting veterans in the task of building our own nation" is not taking care of the veterans unable to work. It is time the leadership of this nation devoted the full measure of our gratefulness by allowing no excuses for one single veteran having to wait for care when they did not make us wait when this nation sent them into combat.

UPDATE
This email came from IAVA

Dear Chaplain Kathie,

Last night, our nation listened closely to the President’s State of the Union address.

We heard words. We heard rhetoric. But we didn’t hear a concrete plan of action to tackle any of the most urgent issues facing new veterans and their families. Nothing on veteran unemployment. And nothing on the staggering rate of military and veteran suicides.

Not only did the President miss a chance to address our issues, he misrepresented a key fact. The President said: "Veterans can now download their electronic medical records with a click of the mouse.”

Unfortunately, as many vets know firsthand, this is not true. Right now, the VA does not allow vets to access their full electronic medical records online.

In the last 24 hours, we’ve heard from hundreds of IAVA Member Veterans, all expressing surprise and outrage that the President could get something so wrong in arguably the most important speech of the year.

We want people to get the facts straight. Please forward this email to your friends and family to help us get the word out.

IAVA is now pushing the White House for a public correction. We’re also advocating for a plan to make VA medical records as accessible and seamless as possible. And in a few weeks, we will launch our 2011 Policy Agenda. Improving the VA and systems like this will be one of our top priorities. And we’ll need your help.

Together in 2011, we'll make sure all veterans know that we’ve got their back.

Best,

Paul

Paul Rieckhoff
Executive Director and Founder
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA)

This is where this came from.

Now, we’ve made great strides over the last two years in using technology and getting rid of waste. Veterans can now download their electronic medical records with a click of the mouse.