Judge's Boarding Pass - April 29-May 2, 2014

Statement

For this week's boarding pass, I'm standing in front of Texas' statue of Sam Houston in the Capitol. This statue should serve as a great reminder for Republicans and Conservatives in Texas. During the Battle of San Jacinto, Santa Ana made a huge mistake by dividing his forces, which eventually led to Sam Houston defeating Santa Ana and the establishment of the Republic of Texas. Conservatives cannot afford to divide our forces, especially when our country needs us to stand together more than ever.

The big story in Washington this week was the Phoenix VA's secret waiting list, that some would call a death list. This list gave bonuses to workers for delaying treatment to certain individuals. This type of practice is disturbing and may have attributed to the deaths of many individuals who fought and served our country. Congress does not tolerate this type of treatment and we have immediately launched an investigation into the situation. In addition, I called Sallie Houser-Hanfelder, the Director of the Central Texas VA. She assured me that there is no secret list at the Temple VA. I will continue to follow up, not only on the VA in Arizona, but also in Texas. We cannot stand for anything that prevents the best medical care for our veterans.

This week, the House passed two appropriations bills. First, we passed H.R. 4486, the Military Construction and Veteran Affairs Appropriations bill (Roll Call 187). We have heavily funded mental health for the Veteran health system, because we must begin to help these Veterans who are suffering with PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. Please read my press release "Veterans Come First!" to learn more.

Additionally, I was able to place a requirement in this bill that requires a VA report to the Appropriations Committee by July 15 on the 2009 Fort Hood shooting. This report would include a detailed analysis of the benefits and medical care the victims of the Fort Hood 2009 shooting are eligible for under the Administration's current classification, and how these compare to the benefits and medical care they would receive now and into the future if this event were classified as an act of terrorism. This is a good bill that not only helps our Veterans, but also will bring the victims of the 2009 Fort Hood shooting closer to justice.

Secondly, we passed H.R. 4487, the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill (Roll Call 193), which is the smallest of our appropriations bills. This bill provides the funding for all of the activity in the House, Senate and Legislature.

Last weekend when I was home in Central Texas, my wife and I had the opportunity to meet with the Dutch pilots that are training in Fort Hood. My wife is a naturalized American citizen from the Netherlands. The event gave her the opportunity to speak her native language with fine individuals who are training with our pilots to be the best in the world. We toasted their King's birthday, which was a real treat for the both of us.

I'm heading back to Texas this weekend, but will be back next week for Charter School week on May 6th. We will use the week to pass legislation that will give strength to the Charter School movement.

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