Posted by Secretary Eric K. Shinseki With the unwavering support of President Obama, VA is transforming to meet its 21st Century responsibilities. Advocacy, on behalf of every generation of Veterans, is central to this transformation. Agent Orange was a blend of herbicides used by the U.S. military, during the Vietnam conflict, to deny concealment to enemy [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee With the end of combat operations in Iraq days ahead, the President salutes our troops for their service and pledges to fulfill America’s commitment to them as veterans. 90,000 troops have left Iraq since the President came into office, and by the end of next year even the troops taking part in the [...]
Posted by Kori Schulman Watch on Tuesday, August 31, 2010, as President Obama addresses the nation on Iraq from the Oval Office at 8 p.m. EST. On August 31, 2010, President Obama will mark the end of America’s combat mission in Iraq. At this key transition point, it is important to show our support to [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee Read the Transcript | Download Video: mp4 (400MB) | mp3 (38MB) Having made 13 visits to Iraq and held steady conversation with Iraqi leaders over the past two years, the Vice President was as well qualified as just about anybody to speak to the Veterans of Foreign Wars as combat operations there draw to a close. [...]
Posted by Kori Schulman The Administration is committed to serving our veterans as well as they have served us. With Vietnam veteran, wounded warrior and lifetime DAV (Disabled American Veterans) member Secretary Shinseki at his side, President Obama talked to Disabled American Veterans in Atlanta, Georgia about historic commitments to our veterans and their families. [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee This morning the President speaks at the national convention of Disabled American Veterans in Atlanta, Georgia. As the end of combat operations in Iraq draws near, it is a time to salute those who have sacrificed their lives, and to honor those who have come back – both through words and [...]
Posted by Julia Simmons and Sophia Solomon White House interns teamed up with Dr. Jill Biden to put together care packages for the families of wounded soldiers being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, MD as part of program “Operation Care Package.” Organized by USO of Metropolitan Washington to [...]
Posted by Tammy Duckworth We often hear the cliché, “the fog of war”—a simplified expression used to describe the chaos and confusion so often found in a combat zone. It’s something all combat Veterans understand. Whether you’re running toward a hardened shelter during a mortar attack or gripping the wheel as your truck races through an [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee President Obama announces that the Department of Veterans Affairs, led by Secretary Shinseki, will begin making it easier for veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to receive the benefits and treatment they need. Read the Transcript | Download Video: mp4 (126MB) | mp3 (4MB)
Posted by Darienne M. Page The health care debate featured no shortage of rumors designed to misinform the American people about the Affordable Care Act. And while the debate has ended and implementation of the new law has begun, the rumor mill hasn’t slowed down. The latest rumor is the unfounded charge that “America’s wounded warriors [...]
Posted by Dr. Jill Biden [Ed. Note: Read Dr. Biden's post about celebrating Independence Day with troops in Iraq yesterday here] Today I started my day off at a breakfast event with civilian volunteers from the U.S. embassy here in Iraq. Just like our soldiers, these individuals are sacrificing a tremendous amount on behalf of our country. [...]
Posted by Dr. Jill Biden Last night, my husband Joe and I flew to Iraq to celebrate the Fourth of July with our troops. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Independence Day than spending it with Americans who are bravely serving our country. Vice President Joe Biden, center, congratulates a soldier on becoming [...]
Posted by Kori Schulman This Independence Day, First Lady Michelle Obama has a special message for all Americans about supporting our military families: The First Lady is asking 100 percent of Americans to support the brave men and women in uniform and their families back home. Here are some things you can do in your community to get [...]
Posted by Kurt White Elena Kagan has recently come under attack as someone who is anti-military. To place such a label on Ms. Kagan is unfair and ill-informed. I began law school at Harvard in 2007 after serving for five years as an active duty officer in the United States Army. During my first year at [...]
Posted by Kori Schulman First Lady Michelle Obama delivers remarks to Marines and their families at Camp Pendleton in California. June 13, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton) “It’s become one of my defining missions as First Lady, and that’s to help the rest of our country better understand and appreciate the incredible service [...]
Posted by Barbara Poppe I’m excited to announce that on Tuesday, June 22, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) will release the nation’s first comprehensive strategy to prevent and end homelessness titled “Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness”. The Council is an independent agency composed of 19 Cabinet Secretaries [...]
Posted by Secretary Hilda Solis No one pays a higher price for our freedom than our nation’s veterans. They deserve our support long after they return from the fields of battle. Unfortunately, many of these brave men and women struggle with the process of re-adapting to civilian life, and they have difficulty reentering the very workforce [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee The President was able to lay a wreath at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, Illinois before it started raining. But he was forced to take the stage only to announce to the crowd that his Memorial Day address had to be cancelled. The crowd was spared standing around in the rain, [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee Vice President Joe Biden delivers Memorial Day remarks in the Arlington National Cemetery Amphitheater in Arlington, May 31, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann) In what he called “the greatest honor of my public life,” this morning the Vice President took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee Ahead of Memorial Day, the President asks all Americans to join him in remembering and honoring our men and women in uniform who have died in service to the country. Read the Transcript | Download Video: mp4 (114MB) | mp3 (4MB)
Posted by Trooper Sanders First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden meet with Leadership 18 members in the State Dining Room of the White House, May 25, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton) First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden met at the White House today with Leadership 18, a coalition of [...]
Posted by General James Jones Yesterday, President Obama signed the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 into law. The law includes provisions that help provide support for the caregivers of seriously injured Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, helps improve services for our nation’s 1.8 million women veterans, and helps expand the availability of health [...]
Posted by Dr. Jill Biden Yesterday, the Vice President and I were honored to kick off the Wounded Warrior Soldier Ride here at the White House, speaking to 28 incredible Americans who will spend three days riding on bicycles and wheelchairs to Annapolis. Their service, courage, and sacrifice for the good of this nation make each [...]
Posted by Trooper Sander Supporting military families is a top Obama Administration priority. April is Month of the Military Child and gives the nation the opportunity to recognize the character, strength and sacrifices of America’s military children as well as the role they play in the armed forces community. Today, there are 1.7 million American children and youth [...]
Posted by Rev. E. Terri LeVelle Last Thursday, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the Office of Public Engagement co-hosted a regional Fatherhood Forum near Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, NC as a part of the President’s National Conversation on Responsible Fatherhood. This event focused on how we can support [...]
Posted by Tammy Duckworth [Update from Matt Flavin, who completed deployments to Bosnia, Afghanistan and Iraq and serves as Director of Veterans and Wounded Warrior Policy: As a proud VFW member, I want to underscore that the health reform legislation being voted on today will not adversely impact our nation’s veterans. In fact, during his [...]
Posted by Tammy Duckworth As Assistant Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, a constant concern for me is having our Veterans dragged into partisan politics. Unfortunately the debate over health reform has seen that happen far too many times, and at the VA we often have to correct misinformation and assure Veterans that the care [...]
Posted by Jason Djang Every seat of the White House Movie Theater was taken by, in Tom Hanks’ memorable words, “some sort of honcho and big shot” on Thursday evening for a screening of the first episode of HBO’s new miniseries The Pacific. Produced by Hanks and Steven Spielberg, the 10 part series tells the [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee First Lady Michelle Obama attends the Joint Armed Forces Officers’ Wives’ Luncheon at Bolling Air Force Base January 26, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton) First Lady Michelle Obama attends the Joint Armed Forces Officers’ Wives’ Luncheon at Bolling Air Force Base January 26, 2010. (Official White House Photo by [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee For the first time in a weekly address, the President is joined by the First Lady as they celebrate Christmas. They both honor those serving overseas, those who have sacrificed for their country, and the families that stand by them. Find ways to lend our troops and their families a home [...]
Posted by Dr. Jill Biden There is nothing like the warmth of home during the holidays. In this spirit, the Vice President and I hosted an early Thanksgiving Dinner last night for servicemembers and their families at our home, the U.S. Naval Observatory. It was the Biden family’s small way of saying thank you to [...]
Posted by Molly Fedick Veterans Day serves as a reminder to not only honor America’s men in uniform, but also the women—the mothers, sisters, daughters, and grandmothers who, throughout history, broke barriers and endured hardships to serve our country. Today at the White House, First Lady Michelle Obama, along with Blue Star Mom Dr. Jill [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee This afternoon, the First Lady will celebrate women in the military—watch live as she welcomes approximately 130 WWII veterans, current servicewomen, and wounded warriors to the White House. Also dropping by is Dr. Jill Biden, a lifelong and strong supporter of veterans, along with Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, Vice [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee The President looks back at a week where we honored those who serve on Veterans Day, and mourned those we lost at Fort Hood. He discusses the review he has ordered into the Fort Hood incident, and pledges to stand by our servicemen and women, as well as our veterans, as his [...]
Posted by Darienne Page Ed. Note: Learn more about Darienne’s work here at the White House in a New York Times audio slideshow. In my family, military service is tradition. My grandfathers were infantry and airmen. My mother is a Gulf War veteran; my father was a Noncommissioned Officer. Among my siblings, three of us [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee On Veterans Day, Vice President Joe Biden joins all Americans in honoring those who have fought and died for our country. Yesterday, in recognition of the seven soldiers killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan last month, the Vice President visited Fort Lewis military base in Washington, where he spoke to a crowd of [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee In a cold but light drizzle today, after breakfast with veterans in the East Room of the White House, the President and the First Lady along with the Vice President and Dr. Biden went to Arlington National Cemetery. The President took part in the wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee In Washington D.C., each government agency is proud to count veterans among their workforce. Everyone from the Department of Homeland to Security to those at the Department of Agriculture observes this day of remembrance in a unique way. And of course this is as big a day as their is for [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee President Barack Obama signs an executive order on the Employment of Veterans in the Federal Government, in the Oval Office, Nov. 9, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) Last night the President signed an Executive Order creating an interagency Council on Veterans Employment to advise the President and Administration on [...]
Posted by Jesse Lee The President condemns the “despicable” attacks at Fort Hood, honoring those who were killed and injured. He also commends those who stood up to help and console those affected: “even as we saw the worst of human nature on full display, we also saw the best of America.”
