On Friday I posted about the importance of the work the Veterans' Affairs Committee does. Then I took a long weekend and came back to find that the new head of the committee, Representative Filner (D-CA), was getting down to business (h/t to Larry Scott at VA Watchdog):
- Thursday, January 11, 2007
Washington, D.C. - Today, congressional leadership from both the House of Representatives and Senate made good on their commitment to America's veterans. In a joint statement issued today, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman Bob Filner, and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman Daniel Akaka announced the reinstatement of the traditional joint hearings process in which veterans and military service organizations appear before the Veterans' Affairs Committees. Today's announcement reversed the decision of GOP leadership in the House of Representatives last Congress."
These longstanding joint hearings provide a vital forum to review the legislative priorities of veterans and military service organizations and allow veterans to directly express their views and interact with Congress," Speaker Pelosi said. "Reinstating the joint hearings will begin anew this valuable dialogue, and will ensure that Congress protects the interests of the brave men and women who have defended our freedom."
As Dave Autry, Deputy National Communications Director for the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), points out in Scott's article, when the Veterans' Service Organizations have the chance to come before Congress to discuss their needs, it's not window dressing--it's a right.
But to most reasonable people that right probably just seems straight forward and uncontroversial. In a word: commonsense. But not to Representative Steve Buyer (R-IN) who did away with it back in November of 2005 for reasons I can't even begin to fathom. I have to say, it's nice to see the 110th Congress reconnecting us with our rights.
