Thank You
Robert Serge
VVA 17 Member
Blog Master
To all my fellow veterans friends and family my we all remember
Date: Fri, 25 Jul 2014 15:55:52 -0500
From: friendsoffreedom@vfw.org
To: rserge1@outlook.com
Subject: Your July 25 Action Corps Weekly
The Veterans of Foreign Wars
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 | July 25, 2014 |
The VFW Elects New Leadership for 2014-2015
The VFW closed out its annual National Convention on Wednesday by electing into office new VFW Commander-in-Chief John W. Stroud of Hawthorne, Nev.; Senior Vice Commander-in-Chief John A. Biedrzycki, Jr., of Robinson Township, Pa.; and Junior Vice Commander-in-Chief Brian J. Duffy of Louisville, Ky. Stroud, an Air Force retiree who served from 1976-1997, addressed the current crisis in care and confidence in the Department of Veterans Affairs by saying it's a health care system worth saving that right now must identify and fix what's broken, hold people appropriately accountable to the fullest extent of the law, and restore the faith of veterans in their VA. He also challenged all VFW members to recruit or reinstate one new member this year, to tell their individual stories to others, and to get involved in VFW projects and programs that serve veterans, service members and their families. Read more.
Update on VA Access and Accountability BillHouse and Senate conferees have so far failed to finish negotiations on the VA Access and Accountability legislation. With just one week left before members head out of town for a five-week recess, the VFW is demanding that they either find a way to compromise or don't return to Washington. VFW delegates to our 115th National Convention passed Resolution 632 on Monday that calls on Congress to immediately pass a bill that would provide necessary resources, reduce appointment wait times, and provide veterans timely access to quality VA health care they have earned and deserve. The new national resolution was quickly followed by a blistering press release on Tuesday that said if Congress goes on recess without passing the legislation, the VFW will work hard with all veterans and the American public to hold every member of Congress fully accountable for failing America's veterans. Read Resolution 632. Read the press release.
The VFW Testifies on VA Fixes and Restoring TrustOn Thursday, the VFW participated in a House VA Committee hearing entitled, "Restoring Trust: The View of the Acting Secretary and the Veterans Community." In the first panel, the committee heard from Acting VA Secretary Sloan Gibson, who spoke about the actions VA is taking to regain veterans' confidence and to change the culture within the department. He said the single most important tool that he needs to reform the system is the authority to expedite personnel actions, and he defended VA's recent request for additional resources on the grounds that they are necessary to provide non-VA care, expand capacity and update their IT systems. On the second panel, National Veterans Service Deputy Director Ryan Gallucci laid out the VFW's actions in response to the recent crisis and our concerns moving forward. He presented details from our 1-800-VFW-1899 request for nationwide comment, and the VFW's position that VA must provide outside care to as many veterans as is necessary to eliminate the current appointment backlog, while continuing to expand capacity as a long-term fix. He also relayed the outrage of membership over Congress' inability to pass the Veterans Access to Care Act, which must happen before they depart on a five-week recess at the end of July. For more on the hearing, visit our blog.
Senate Confirmation Hearing on VA AppointeeOn Tuesday, the Senate VA Committee held a hearing to consider the nomination of Robert McDonald to be the new Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The hearing delved into Mr. McDonald's background as an Army Ranger and chief executive of Proctor and Gamble, as well as his plans to address the problems facing the VA today. Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) noted that VA needs good quality management, transparency and accountability, and that he believes Mr. McDonald's military and corporate experience are the necessary tools to creating a well-run and accountable VA. The Senate will likely vote to confirm McDonald next week. For the recorded webcast of the hearing, visit the Senate VA website.
Reservations Open for Disabled Veteran Memorial DedicationReservations are now open for the Oct. 5 dedication of the VFW-supported American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, which is being constructed at the foot of Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. The dedication is free and open to the public with no assigned general seating; however, due to security requirements, a maximum of only four guests can be registered at one time, and each registrant must have a unique name that matches a photo ID. For more information and to register, click here.
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As always, we want to share your advocacy stories on the VFW Capitol Hill blog. To share your stories, fill out our online form or simply email photos and stories directly to vfwac@vfw.org.
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