Bernie Sanders offers mea culpa on VA delays

[NCTraveler]

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders offered on Wednesday night as close to an apology as he could when pressed on why he -- as the former chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee -- waited so long to act on the burgeoning wait list scandal at the VA.

When pressed by CNN's Anderson Cooper on Sanders lack of action, the Vermont senator responded, "We should have done better."

The admission came during a CNN town hall forum in New Hampshire hosted by Cooper, who confronted Sanders with the candidate's own record.

Sanders has been criticized for his lack of action during the two years he chaired the committee, all but ignoring the government's own investigations pointing out quality of care and wait list issues at VA medical centers across the country.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/04/politics/bernie-sanders-veterans-affairs-delays/

[NCTraveler]

1. .

"Well, a fair question. And I think you know the answer is that we have worked on many, many issues," Sanders said. "And your point is fair, that we should've acted sooner. We should've known what was going on in Phoenix, those long waiting lines and the lies that some administrators were telling us."

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/04/politics/bernie-sanders-veterans-affairs-delays/

[beam me up scottie]

2. Bernie Sanders, champion of vets

Bernie Sanders, champion of vets

Veterans Day is a great time to remember the American heroes who have served our country in war and peace in the far corners of the world, and a great time to express appreciation to political leaders who have been powerful voices for the interests of veterans in the halls of government.

One such champion of the cause of veterans is Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt), who has long served on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, was chairman of the committee when Democrats controlled the Senate, and is now the ranking Democrat on the committee with Republicans in control of the Senate.

Sanders has supported some military actions, such as the military response to the crisis in Kosovo during the Clinton years and the campaign in Afghanistan after the terrorist attacks in 2001, and has opposed other military actions, including his strong and consistent opposition to the Iraq War that was unwisely initiated after the attacks against the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. But whether he has supported or opposed different military initiatives, Sanders has always fought for the interests of veterans in good times and bad.

As a leader on the Veterans Affairs Committee, Sanders has worked closely with major veterans organizations and with leading champions of veterans in the Senate. He has worked closely with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and former Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.), among many others. McCain and Webb deserve a special commendation as genuine war heroes who served bravely in combat and as aggressive champions of veterans' causes throughout their time in public life.

Sanders has been at the forefront of battles to improve healthcare and benefits for vets, expand employment opportunities for vets after they return home from battle, and improve the Veterans Administration after the scandals that plagued the system. Whether programs to help vets were originally sponsored or supported by McCain, Webb or other senators or were personally spearheaded by Sanders, he has alway been there for the vets.

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/defense/259677-bernie-sanders-champion-of-vets

Veterans for Bernie Sanders: Why the anti-war candidate is so beloved by former soldiers.

AlterNet When then-freshman Vermont Congressman Bernie Sanders first arrived in Washington, D.C., he didn’t first tend to the great social democratic causes that he spent his life working on: a national living wage, health care for all, or expanding labor unions.

Rather, the very first bill he introduced was H.R. 695 – the Guard and Reserve Family Protection Act of 1991. The purpose of the bill was to make sure that reserve and National Guard soldiers who were deployed to serve in the Gulf War were entitled to any pay they may have missed as a result of going to war, to ensure that their deployment wages were equal to their civilian wages.

Sanders’ career in Congress has been living testimony to the fact that opposing wars but supporting our soldiers are not mutually exclusive goals. He has been a consistent advocate for both active duty military and veterans, and there are now signs that those veterans are returning the favor, organizing for his campaign.

A Steadfast Advocate For Veterans

“He works for veterans. He’s not just saying that. He does do the work,” said Brenda Cruickshank a retired Army nurse who served as the past commander of the Vermont Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), over the summer. Indeed, last spring the national VFW presented Sanders with its 2015 Congressional Award.

That award came after Sanders forged a successful compromise to overhaul the Veterans Administration (VA), which had been plagued in scandals over its inability to handle its intake. “Last year when we had the scandal at the VA, he was incredibly effective, engaged in getting the legislation passed, in getting it funded. Frankly, without him, I don’t think we would have gotten it done because there was a lot of name-calling but there wasn’t a lot of constructive, ‘OK, here’s the resources. …’ And he did it,” said Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), noting how crucial Sanders was to the overhaul.

The praise for Sanders for his leadership on the VA issue was bipartisan. The deal wouldn’t have gone down without the support of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who worked closely with Sanders. “I found him to be honorable and good as his word. And his word was good,” said McCain. “Senator Sanders understands what it takes to get legislation across the goal line,” said Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) of the VA compromise. “I think he’s very outspoken in terms of where he is ideologically. But when he gets down to the need of get legislation into law, then I find him to be one who’s willing to sit down and compromise and negotiate to get a final product.”

http://www.salon.com/2015/10/24/vets_for_bernie_why_the_most_anti_war_candidate_has_many_military_supporters_partner/

[Iliyah]

3. Uh huh

[Punkingal]

4. Imagine...taking responsibility instead of lying.

[DustyJoe]

5. typical gubbmint response

Well we coulda
But we woulda
Now we shoulda

So instead we didn't do anything. No surprise from a committee chairman in this explaination.

[Motown_Johnny]

6. Unlike Hillary who can't admit her own mistakes until the polls tell her to.

Yes, they should have done better. Is there any doubt about it?

What you are ignoring is the state the VA was in when Sanders became the chair. It was already bad. Yes, they should have done better.

An honest response. Better attack him for it!

[AtomicKitten]

7. When will Hillary offer a mea culpa to the victims of the bullshit war she greenlighted?

[Armstead]

8. An honest answer-- We can't have that in politics, no siree

"We made great progress, Nothing to see here citizen. Move on."

I suppose you'd prefer that as an answer?

[Ron Green]

9. My care at the VA is first class. Three days ago I was at the hospital

getting blood drawn for an important test, and chatting with the tech. He agreed that President Sanders would be one of the best things that could happen to the VA medical system, and told me he's constantly disabusing other Vets of their Fox-fed ideas in favor of Trump. "I'm voting for the Communist," he says to them.