Make Your Vote Count for incumbents and Candidates Who Support Veterans [Opinion]

Some 17 million Americans are Veterans of the U S Armed Forces. California is home to 1.5 million Veterans, and Riverside County hosts the third most Veterans of the state’s 58 counties.

Some 60 % of Veterans’ votes in the last presidential elections cycle rolled red. Who knows if they roll red in the midterms?  Republicans in Congressional races in California  are going head-to-head this cycle with the Democratic candidates and with redistricting are highly likely to lose seats.

While the Veterans Administration has improved some from 2014 when Veterans were dying while waiting for help, it’s far from perfect.  Too many suicides have occurred. Processing a claim for Veterans benefits still takes too long.

While Riverside County has added additional Veterans Service Officers, the VA is still backlogged. It’s not Riverside County’s fault that claims move slowly.

Just getting your military medical records from the Records Center alone takes months. Most members of Congress know this. In fact they will tell you, “We are sorry, but don’t ask us to look into your case until it has been filed for at least six months.”

One organization gets high praise from Veterans and dependents alike — the DAV! Disabled American Veterans help you file a claim. They have a high rate of success getting your claim approved for medical care, compensation, or both. That help is free!

The DAV, county and state Veterans Service Officers help Riverside County Veterans who were injured in the line of duty get help. We have lots of good people in the U S Veterans Administration too.  They want to help but Congress must step up and push two bills.

Veterans organizations and individuals should not commit to supporting incumbents unless they absolutely commit to voting Yes on the Veterans Bill of Rights and Veterans ACCESS Act.

Both immensely benefit Veterans. Don’t toss your support to Congress members or Senators until they tell you if they will vote for our Veterans Bill of Rights and the Veterans Access Act.

Ken Calvert, Raul Ruiz, and Mark Takano are incumbents. Let them know you would appreciate their support of these two bills. They improve our access to care and our rights to know what benefits we have earned by our service.  This election cycle, make your vote really count for your fellow Veterans and Americans.