Senator Hillary Clinton Endorsed by the
Texas Democratic Veterans Chairman and
DNC Veterans and Military Families Council Member Larry Romo
My Fellow Texas Democrats,
I respectfully request that you vote for Senator Hillary Clinton for President in our Texas Democratic Primary. Senator Hillary Clinton is truly a champion our military, veterans and their family members. She clearly has been in the forefront of opportunities to live out the American dream of success. Many of these opportunities have come with joining the military either in the enlistment or officer ranks.
Hillary Clinton has the necessary and seasoned experience and proven record to ensure we have a strong military but one that is prudent in the way we use our military. National security, military and foreign policy issues have been key areas she has worked on. She has a common sense approach to get us out of Iraq and will get other countries to help us out in the Middle East. She can clearly contrast John McCain and his non-common sense approach to keep us in Iraq 50 to 100 more years. The United States will be well respected again with Hillary Clinton as our Commander-In-Chief.
Hillary Clinton has been a leader among leaders on the Senate Armed Services Committee. She was recognized by the American Legion as "Unsung Hero" due to her leadership role in securing record funding for veteran's health care. She has worked in a bi-partisan effort to enhance the military and veteran medical benefits, secured funding for veterans' hospitals, reductions in prescription drug prices for veterans and additional support for disabled veterans. She helped create a health tracking system for all active duty personnel and reservists to ensure that they receive regular checkups. She has expanded access to military healthcare benefits (TRICARE) for all Guard and Reserve members whether they are on active duty or not in order to prevent another illness like Gulf War Syndrome. Hillary Clinton has secured protections for our soldiers against unscrupulous financial practices like predatory lending and insurance scams. She increased the military survivor benefit from $12,000 to $100,000. She introduced legislation to honor veterans of the Korean and the Cold War. She voted to increase funding for veterans' medical and mental health needs twenty nine times.
Hillary Clinton is always looking for better ways to enhance the wellness of the military and veterans. For example, the new GI Bill for the 21st Century legislation that her and Representative Murphy introduced. Numerous veterans, family and educational organizations whole-heartedly support this legislation. The 21st Century GI Bill of Rights Act will guarantee eligibility to all servicemembers -- Active Duty, National Guard, and Reserves -- who have served since September 11, 2001 and deployed overseas in support of a combat operation. Eligibility will also be extended to Active Duty personnel who have served a minimum of two years on Active Duty since September 11, 2001, and National Guard and Reserve personnel who have served a minimum aggregate of two years on Active Duty since September 11, 2001.
The Clinton-Murphy bill will:
• Increase Education Opportunities. The act will fund undergraduate education for servicemembers - eight college semesters of tuition, fees, books, room and board, and other educational costs (commensurate with costs paid by non-veterans). The education grant also can be used for specialized trade or technical training, and certification and licensing programs for both veterans and disabled veterans. Participants will not be required to pay into the program to receive grants.
• Increase Veterans Housing Opportunities. The act will exempt Veterans from paying loan fees and expand opportunities for veterans to purchase, build, repair or improve a home by increasing access to low interest loans through the Veterans Affairs Home Loan Guaranty Loan Program for homes valued up to $625,000. The current program requires loan fees and is capped at the conforming loan rate of $417,000.
• Increase Veterans Entrepreneurial Opportunities. The Clinton-Murphy bill would establish a Veterans Microloan Program, administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Small Business Administration. The program would provide Veterans microloans for entrepreneurial ventures up to $100,000 with interest rates capped at 2.5 percent and without requiring collateral. The program would also direct the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide Veterans counseling, technical assistance, and community outreach assistance.
Senator Hillary Clinton will always ensure we have the most optimal fighting force and take care of our military, veterans and family members. She is the voice that the United States needs today. I appreciate your vote for her as the President of the United States.
Sincerely,
LARRY ROMO, Lieutenant Colonel, USAFR (Retired)
USAF Academy Class of 1978
Texas Democratic Veterans Chairman
DNC Veterans and Military Families Council Member
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