Rep. Ellison Statement on Veterans Day

Statement

Rep. Keith Ellison released the following statement today in recognition of Veterans Day, which takes place on Monday, November 11:

"When a soldier volunteers to serve his or her country, America makes a promise that we will be forever grateful for their sacrifice. Unfortunately, we've broken that promise too many times this year.

"In March, across-the-board budget cuts made it harder for veterans to find work and housing assistance. Nearly 100,000 veterans and service members are not receiving employment assistance because of budget cuts. Homeless veterans and veterans with mental health issues are also finding their assistance reduced because of budget cuts.

"Food assistance may be the only way an unemployed veteran can put food on the table for his or her family, but Republicans voted in June to cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by $40 billion. Over 900,000 veterans live in households that depend on food assistance provided by SNAP.

"The reckless federal government shutdown in October left many Minnesota Veterans Administration offices understaffed, making it harder for veterans to sign up or change the benefits they've earned. Understaffing increased an already large backlog of benefits claims. It also cost our economy 120,000 jobs, while thousands of veterans are looking for work. The recent veterans unemployment rate is 10.1%, much higher than the national average.

"We should keep our promises to our veterans--not just on Veterans Day, but every day. We need to replace reckless budget cuts, end these manufactured crises and stop cutting the benefits our soldiers have earned with their sacrifice.

"We will be measured by how we take care of those who risk it all to defend our nation. We can and should do better for America's veterans."

Source