{"id":26349,"date":"2011-08-30T12:13:41","date_gmt":"2011-08-30T16:13:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/valorguardians.com\/blog\/?p=26349"},"modified":"2011-08-30T13:36:50","modified_gmt":"2011-08-30T17:36:50","slug":"the-president-at-the-american-legion-convention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=26349","title":{"rendered":"The President at the American Legion Convention"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"American<\/a><\/p>\n

Hit F5 to see updates;<\/p>\n

Well, somehow the President made us aware of the fact that we’ve made him take his eyes off of the victims of Hurrican Irene just to be here. Oh, and HE ordered the troops to fight the Taliban, apparently, they weren’t fighting very hard until he told them to “take the fight to the Taliban”.<\/p>\n

Promises to keep the US military the best, but I’m not sure how he can keep that promise by cutting the Defense budget by $800 billion.<\/p>\n

Promises to keep promises to returning veterans. Promises to “not balance the budget on the backs of our veterans”. That will remain to be seen.<\/p>\n

“We’ve” begun paying disability to Vietnam veterans. “We” have begun to investigate the “Gulf War Syndrome”<\/p>\n

Promises an electronic medical record…even those it’s years behind schedule. “Backlog” continues, despite Shinseki’s promise to have cleared up by now.<\/p>\n

“For the first time ever” the entire Federal government has made veterans a priority. That’s why the biggest cuts are to Defense and personnel.<\/p>\n

He actually takes credit for the “Caregivers program” which doesn’t qualify enough family members and is woefully underfunded…not to mention that it was months late being implemented.<\/p>\n

He’s says he has dirested the federal government to hire more veterans…good…we’re the only ones who can straighten out the bureaucracy.<\/p>\n

Somehow he’s “directed” private employers to hire 100,000 veterans with tax credits for employers who hire returning veterans.<\/p>\n

“God bless all of our veterans and Glod bless the United States of America”<\/p>\n

I apologize for the crappy fucking picture but a Secret Service agent, named McCaskill couldn’t let me “charge the stage” even though I was fifty feet from the stage. Then he had the unmitigated gall to lecture me on professionalism when I told him he shouldn’t be a dick.
\n

\"\"<\/a><\/center>
\nThe President’s prepared speech is below the jump (thanks to Blackfive);
\n<\/p>\n

Remarks for President Barack Obama \u2013 As Prepared for Delivery<\/p>\n

American Legion National Convention<\/p>\n

Minneapolis, MN<\/p>\n

Tuesday, August 30, 2011<\/p>\n

As Prepared for Delivery \u2013<\/p>\n

Hello Legionnaires! Thank you, Commander Foster, for your introduction and for your lifetime of service\u2014to your fellow Marines, soldiers and veterans. On behalf of us all, thank you Jimmie. And thank you to your entire leadership team for welcoming me today. Your National Adjutant, Dan Wheeler. Your Executive Director, your voice in Washington, Peter Gaytan. And the President of the American Legion Auxiliary, Carlene Ashworth.<\/p>\n

To Rehta Foster and all the spouses, daughters and sisters of the Auxiliary\u2026and the Sons of the American Legion\u2026as military families, you also served, and we salute you as well.<\/p>\n

It is wonderful to be back with the American Legion. Back in Illinois, we worked together to make sure veterans across the state were getting the benefits they had earned. When I was in the Senate, we worked together to shine a spotlight on the tragedy of homelessness among our veterans\u2014and the need to end it.<\/p>\n

As President, I\u2019ve welcomed Jimmie and your leadership to the Oval Office\u2014to hear directly from you. And I\u2019ve been honored to have you by my side when I signed advance appropriations to protect veterans health care from the budget battles in Washington. When I signed legislation to give new support to veterans and their caregivers. And most recently, when I proposed new initiatives to make sure the private sector is hiring our talented veterans.<\/p>\n

So, American Legion, I thank you for your partnership. And I appreciate the opportunity to talk with you today about what we need to do to make sure America is taking care of our veterans as well as you\u2019ve taken care of us. <\/p>\n

I\u2019m grateful to be with you for another reason. A lot of our fellow citizens are still reeling from Hurricane Irene and its aftermath. Folks are surveying the damage and some are dealing with tremendous flooding. As a government, we\u2019re going to make sure that states and communities have the support they need as people recover.<\/p>\n

And across the nation, we\u2019re still digging out from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. It\u2019s taking longer and been more difficult than any of us had imagined. And even though we\u2019ve taken some steps in the right direction, we have to do more. Our economy has to grow faster. We have to create more jobs, and do it faster. Most of all, we have to break the gridlock in Washington that\u2019s been preventing us from taking the action we need to get this economy moving. That\u2019s why, next week, I\u2019ll be speaking to the nation about a plan to create jobs and reduce our deficit \u2013 a plan I want to see passed in Congress. We need to get this done.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what else I know. We Americans have been through tough times before, much tougher than these. And we didn\u2019t just get through them, we emerged stronger than before. Not by luck. Not by chance. But because in hard times, Americans don\u2019t quit. We don\u2019t give up. We summon that spirit that says, when we come together, when we choose to move forward together, as one people, there\u2019s absolutely nothing we can\u2019t achieve.<\/p>\n

Legionnaires, you know this. It\u2019s the story of your lives. And in times like these, all Americans can draw strength from your example. When Hitler controlled a continent and fascism seemed unstoppable, when our harbor was bombed and our Pacific fleet crippled, some declared that the United States had been reduced to a third-class power. But you, our veterans of World War II, crossed the oceans, stormed the beaches, freed the millions, liberated the camps and showed that the United States of America is the greatest force for freedom the world has ever known.<\/p>\n

When North Korea invaded the South, pushing the allied forces into a tiny sliver of territory\u2014the Pusan (Poo-sahn) Perimeter\u2014it seemed like that war could be lost. But you, our Korean War veterans, pushed back, fought on, year after bloody year. And this past Veterans Day, I went to Seoul and joined our Korean War veterans for the 60th anniversary of that war, and we marked that milestone in a free and prosperous Republic of Korea.<\/p>\n

When Communist forces in Vietnam unleashed the Tet Offensive, it fueled the debate here at home that raged over that war. You, our Vietnam veterans, didn\u2019t always receive the respect you deserved\u2014which was a national shame. But let it be remembered that you won every major battle of that war. Every one. And as President, I\u2019ve been honored to welcome our Vietnam veterans to the White House to finally present them with the medals and recognition they had earned. It\u2019s been a chance to convey, on behalf of the American people, those simple words with which our Vietnam veterans greet each other\u2014\u201cwelcome home.\u201d <\/p>\n

Legionnaires, in the decades that followed, the spirit of your service was carried forth by our troops in the sands of Desert Storm and the rugged hills of the Balkans. Now, it is carried on by a new generation. Next weekend, we will mark the 10th anniversary of those awful attacks on our nation. In the days ahead, we\u2019ll honor the lives we lost and the families who loved them, the first responders who rushed to save others, and all those who have served to keep us safe these ten difficult years, especially the men and women of our armed forces. <\/p>\n

Today, as we near this solemn anniversary, it\u2019s fitting that we salute the extraordinary decade of service rendered by the 9\/11 Generation\u2014the more than five million Americans who have worn the uniform over the past ten years. They were there, on duty, that September morning, having enlisted in a time of peace, but they instantly transitioned to a war-footing. They\u2019re the millions of recruits who have stepped forward since, seeing their nation at war and saying \u201csend me.\u201d They\u2019re every single Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine and Coast Guardsman serving today, who has volunteered to serve in a time of war, knowing they could be sent into harm\u2019s way. <\/p>\n

They come from every corner of our country, big cities and small towns, from every background and creed. They\u2019re sons and daughters who carry on their family\u2019s tradition of service, and new immigrants who\u2019ve become our newest citizens. They\u2019re our National Guardsmen and Reservists who have served in unprecedented deployments. They\u2019re the record number of women in our military, proving themselves in combat like never before. And every day for the past ten years, these men and women have succeeded together\u2014as one American team. <\/p>\n

A generation of innovators, they\u2019ve changed the way America fights and wins its wars. Raised in the age of the Internet, they\u2019ve harnessed new technologies on the battlefield. They\u2019ve learned the cultures, traditions and languages of the places they\u2019ve served. Trained to fight, they\u2019ve taken on the role of diplomats, mayors and development experts, negotiating with tribal sheikhs, working with village shuras, and partnering with communities. Young captains, sergeants and lieutenants have assumed responsibilities once reserved for more senior commanders, reminding us that in an era when so many other institutions have shirked their obligations, the men and women of the United States military welcome responsibility. <\/p>\n

In a decade of war, they have borne an extraordinary burden, with more than two million of our service members deploying to the warzones. Hundreds of thousands have deployed again and again, year after year. Never before has our nation asked so much of our all-volunteer force\u2014that one percent of Americans who wears the uniform.<\/p>\n

We see the scope of their sacrifice in the tens of thousands who now carry the scars of war, seen and unseen\u2014our remarkable wounded warriors. We see it in our extraordinary military families who serve here at home\u2014the military spouses who hold their families together; the millions of military children, many of whom have lived most of their young lives with our nation at war and mom or dad deployed.<\/p>\n

Most profoundly, we see the wages of war in those patriots who never came home. They gave their all, their last full measure of devotion, in Kandahar and the Korengal (Core-en-gaul) and Helmand, in the battles for Baghdad and Fallujah and Ramadi. Now they lay at rest in quiet corners of America, but they live on in the families who loved them and in a nation that is safer because of their service. And today we pay humble tribute to the more than 6,200 Americans in uniform who have given their lives in this hard decade of war. We honor them all.<\/p>\n

Through their service, their sacrifice, their astonishing record of achievement, our forces have earned their place among the greatest of generations. Toppling the Taliban in just weeks. Driving al Qaeda from the training camps where they plotted 9\/11. Giving the Afghan people the opportunity to live free from terror. When the decision was made to go into Iraq, our troops raced across deserts and removed a dictator in less than a month. When insurgents, militias and terrorists plunged Iraq into chaos, our troops adapted, endured ferocious urban combat, reduced the violence and gave Iraqis a chance to forge their own future. <\/p>\n

When a resurgent Taliban threatened to give al Qaeda more space to plot against us, the additional forces I ordered to Afghanistan went on the offensive\u2014taking the fight to the Taliban, pushing them out of their safe havens, allowing Afghans to reclaim their communities and training Afghan forces. And a few months ago, our troops achieved our greatest victory yet in the fight against those who attacked us on 9\/11\u2014delivering justice to Osama bin Laden in one of the greatest intelligence and military operations in American history. <\/p>\n

Credit for these successes, this progress, belongs to all who have worn the uniform in these wars. Today, we are honored to be joined by some of them. I would ask all those who served this past decade\u2014members of the 9\/11 Generation\u2014to stand and accept the thanks of a grateful nation.<\/p>\n

Thanks to these Americans, we\u2019re moving forward from a position of strength. Having ended our combat mission in Iraq and removed more than 100,000 troops so far, we\u2019ll remove the rest of our troops by the end of this year and end that war. Having put al Qaeda on the path to defeat, we won\u2019t relent until the job is done. Having started to drawdown our forces in Afghanistan, we\u2019ll bring home 33,000 troops by next summer and bring home more troops in the coming years. As our mission transitions from combat to support, Afghans will take responsibility for their own security, and the longest war in American history will come to a responsible end.<\/p>\n

For our troops and military families who have sacrificed so much, this means relief from an unrelenting decade of operations. Today, fewer of our sons and daughters are serving in harm\u2019s way. For so many troops who\u2019ve already done their duty, we\u2019ve put an end to stop loss. And our soldiers can now look forward to shorter deployments. That means more time home between deployments and more time training for the full range of missions they\u2019ll face. <\/p>\n

Indeed, despite ten years of continuous war, it must be said\u2014America\u2019s military is the best it\u2019s ever been. We saw that again, most recently, in the skill and precision of our brave forces who helped the Libyan people finally break free from the grip of Moammar Qadhafi. And as we meet the tests that the future will surely bring, including hard fiscal choices here at home, there should be no doubt. The United States of America will keep our military the best-trained, the best-led, the best-equipped fighting force in history. <\/p>\n

As today\u2019s wars end, as our troops come home, we\u2019re reminded once more of our responsibilities to all who have served. For the bond between our forces and our citizens is a sacred trust. And for me and my administration, upholding that trust isn\u2019t just a matter of policy. It\u2019s not about politics. It\u2019s a moral obligation.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why my very first budget included the largest percentage increase to the VA budget in the past 30 years. So far, we\u2019re on track to have increased funding for Veterans Affairs by 30 percent. And because we passed advance appropriations, when Washington politics threatened to shut down the government last spring, the veterans medical care that you count on was safe. <\/p>\n

Let me say something else about the VA funding you depend on. As a nation, we\u2019re facing tough choices as we put our fiscal house in order. But I want to be absolutely clear\u2014we cannot, and we must not, balance the budget on the backs of our veterans. And as Commander in Chief, I won\u2019t allow it.<\/p>\n

With these historic investments, we\u2019re making dramatic improvements to veterans health care. We\u2019re improving VA facilities to better serve our women veterans. And we\u2019re expanding outreach and care for our rural veterans, like those I met during my recent visit to Cannon (Can-non) Falls, including two proud Legionnaires\u2014Tom Newman of Legion Post 620 in Hugo and Joseph Kidd, Post 164 in Stewartville. <\/p>\n

For our Vietnam veterans, because we declared that three diseases are now presumed to be related to your exposure to Agent Orange, we\u2019ve begun paying the disability benefits you need. For our veterans of the Gulf War, we\u2019re moving forward to address the nine infectious diseases that we declared are now presumed be related to your service in Desert Storm.<\/p>\n

At the same time, our outstanding VA Secretary, Ric Shinseki, is working every day to build a 21st century VA. Many of our Vietnam vets are already submitting their Agent Orange claims electronically. Hundreds of thousands of you, from all wars, are requesting your benefits online. Thanks to that new \u201cblue button\u201d on the VA website, you can now share your personal health information with your doctors outside the VA. And we\u2019re making progress in sharing medical records between DOD and VA. We\u2019re not there yet, but we\u2019re going to keep at it until our troops and veterans have a lifetime electronic record that you can keep for life.<\/p>\n

Of course, we also have to do something else\u2014break the backlog of disability claims. Now, I know that over the past year, the backlog has actually grown, due to new claims from Agent Orange. But let me say this, and I know Secretary Shinseki agrees: when our veterans who fought for our country have to fight just to get the benefits you\u2019ve earned\u2014that\u2019s unacceptable.<\/p>\n

So this is going to remain a priority. We\u2019re going to keep hiring new claims processors, keep investing in new paperless systems and keep moving ahead with our innovation competition in which our dedicated VA employees are developing new ways to process your claims faster\u2014not in months, but days. The bottom line is this\u2014your claims need to be processed quickly and accurately, the first time. And we\u2019re not going to rest until we get this done. <\/p>\n

So too with our mission to end homelessness among our veterans. Already, we\u2019ve helped to bring tens of thousands of veterans off the streets. For the first time ever, we\u2019ve made veterans and military families a priority\u2014not just at the VA and DOD, but across the federal government. And that includes making sure that federal agencies are working together so that every veteran who fought for America has a home in America. <\/p>\n

We\u2019re working to fulfill our obligations to our 9\/11 Generation veterans, especially our wounded warriors. The constant threat of improvised explosive devices has meant a new generation of service members with multiple traumatic injuries, including Traumatic Brain Injury. And thanks to advanced armor and medical technologies, our troops are surviving injuries that would have been fatal in previous wars. Put simply, we\u2019re saving more lives, but more American veterans will live with severe wounds for a lifetime. So we need to be there for them\u2014for their lifetime. <\/p>\n

We\u2019re giving unprecedented support to our wounded warriors\u2014especially those with T-B-I. And thanks to the veterans and caregivers legislation I signed into law, we\u2019ve started training caregivers so they can receive the skills and stipends they need to care for their loved ones.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re working aggressively to address another signature wound of this war, which has led too many fine troops and veterans to take their own lives\u2014Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. We\u2019re continuing to make major investments\u2014improving outreach and suicide prevention, hiring and training more mental health counselors and treating more veterans than ever before. <\/p>\n

The days when depression and P-T-S-D were stigmatized must end. That\u2019s why I made the decision to start sending condolence letters to the families of service members who take their lives while deployed in a combat zone. These American patriots did not die because they were weak. They were warriors. And every man and woman in uniform, and every veteran, needs to know that your nation will be there to help you stay strong.<\/p>\n

In recent months, we\u2019ve heard new reports of some of our veterans not getting the prompt mental health care they desperately need. That, too, is unacceptable. Because if a veteran has the courage to seek help, then we need to be doing everything in our power to deliver the life-saving mental health care they need. So Secretary Shinseki and the VA are going to stay on this. And we’ll continue to make it easier for veterans with post traumatic stress to qualify for VA benefits, regardless of the war you served in. If you served in a combat theater and a VA doctor confirms a diagnosis of PTSD, that’s enough.
\nWhich brings me to the final area where America must meet its obligations to our veterans, indeed, where we need each other\u2014and that\u2019s the task of renewing our nation\u2019s economic strength. After a decade of war, it\u2019s time to focus on nation building here at home. And our veterans, especially our 9\/11 Generation veterans, have the skills and the dedication to help lead the way. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s why we\u2019re funding the post-9\/11 GI Bill, which is now helping more than 500,000 veterans and family members go to college, get their degrees and play their part in moving America forward. It\u2019s why, this fall, we\u2019ll start including vocational training and apprenticeships as well, so veterans can develop the skills to succeed in today\u2019s economy. And it\u2019s why I\u2019ve directed the federal government to hire more veterans, including more than 100,000 veterans in the past year and a half alone.<\/p>\n

But in this tough economy, far too many of our veterans are unemployed. That\u2019s why I\u2019ve proposed a comprehensive initiative to make sure we\u2019re tapping the incredible talents of our veterans. And it\u2019s got two main parts. <\/p>\n

First, we\u2019re going to do more to help our newest veterans find and get that private sector job. We\u2019re going to offer more help with career development and job searches. I\u2019ve directed DOD and the VA to create a \u201creverse boot camp\u201d to help our newest veterans prepare for civilian jobs and translate their exceptional military skills into industry-accepted licenses and credentials. And today I\u2019m calling on every state to pass legislation that makes it easier for our veterans to get the credentials and the jobs for which they are so clearly qualified. This needs to happen. <\/p>\n

Second, we\u2019re encouraging the private sector to do its part. I\u2019ve challenged companies across America to hire or train 100,000 unemployed veterans or their spouses. This builds on the commitments that many companies have already made as part of the Joining Forces campaign championed by my wife Michelle and the Vice President\u2019s wife, Dr. Jill Biden. <\/p>\n

100,000 jobs for veterans and spouses. And to get this done, I\u2019ve proposed a Returning Heroes Tax Credit for companies that hire unemployed veterans, and a Wounded Warrior Tax Credit for companies that hire unemployed veterans with a disability. When Congress returns from recess, this needs to be at the top of the agenda. For the sake of our veterans, for the sake of our economy, we need these veterans working and contributing and creating the new jobs and industries that will keep America competitive in the 21st century.<\/p>\n

These are the obligations we have to each other\u2014our forces, our veterans, our citizens. These are the responsibilities we must fulfill. Not just when it\u2019s easy, or when it\u2019s convenient, but always. That\u2019s a lesson we learned again this year in the life and passing of Frank Buckles, our last veteran from the First World War, at the age of 110.<\/p>\n

Frank lived the American Century. An ambulance driver on the Western front, he bore witness to the carnage of the trenches. During the Second World War, he survived more than three years in Japanese prisoner of war camps. Like so many veterans, he came home, went to school, pursued a career, started a family and lived a good life, on his farm in West Virginia. <\/p>\n

Even in his later years, after turning 100, Frank Buckles still gave back to his country. Speaking to schoolchildren about his extraordinary life. Meeting and inspiring other veterans. And for 80 years, serving as a proud member of the American Legion. <\/p>\n

The day he was laid to rest, I ordered that flags be flown at half-staff\u2014at the White House, at government buildings across the nation and at our embassies around the world. As Frank Buckles lay in honor at Arlington\u2019s memorial chapel, hundreds passed by his flagged-draped casket in quiet procession. Most were strangers who never knew him, but they knew the story of his service and they felt compelled to offer their thanks to this American soldier.<\/p>\n

That afternoon, I went to Arlington to spend a few moments with Frank\u2019s daughter Susannah who cared from her father to the very end. It was a chance for me to convey the gratitude of the entire nation and to pay my respects to an American who reflected the best of who we are as a people. <\/p>\n

And Legionnaires, it was a reminder\u2014not just to the family and friends of Corporal Frank Buckles, but to the veterans and families of all generations: no matter when you served, no matter how many years ago you took off the uniform, no matter how long you live as a proud veteran of this country we love, America will never leave your side.<\/p>\n

God bless you, God bless all our veterans. And God bless the United States of America.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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