Democrat U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico is rolling out a plan to support Texas veterans.
The new plan is only the latest in Talarico's U.S. Senate campaign against Republican candidate Ken Paxton. The two will face off in the Nov. 3 General Election for a chance to replace outgoing U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.
Talarico's plan is aimed at tackling a wide swath of issues plaguing veterans, such as physical and mental health, housing and job insecurity, and ending the "forever wars" that put military families at constant risk.
“Texas has more Veterans than any other state, and they deserve a senator who will fight for them the way they fight for us,” Talarico said in a news release. “That’s why I’m proud to announce my plan to support our
brave men and women in uniform and bolster the systems they rely on when they return home.”
Paxton has so far not announced a plan aimed at providing assistance to veterans.
“When I look at James Talarico, I see someone dedicated to the ideals of duty, honor, and country,” Vietnam veteran Ray Bagby said in the release. “I believe him to be an honorable man, a man of integrity, and one who wants to see everyone — everyone — flourish in this country. Based upon his proven performance in the Texas legislature, I know he exerts great effort in the performance of his duty and always takes it seriously. He is not a person driven to seek personal gain, as so many are today. Therefore, it is my extreme pleasure to support him.”
The following are some of the points in Talarico's plan to provide additional support to Texas veterans:
- Meet the mental health care needs of the veteran population by improving education about care options, expanding telemedicine options, and reducing wait times for veterans by building a more robust mental health workforce;
- Make sure veterans receive the health care they have earned by fully funding the VA and standing against efforts to privatize it, reclassify VA medical care as mandatory spending, automatically enroll all eligible veterans in VA health care, ensure pay parity for VA healthcare providers to fill staffing gaps, fully implement the PACT Act, and reverse the mass terminations of federal veteran employees and restore unfilled roles that were eliminated;
- Ensure veterans have access to housing, job training, career opportunities, and real pathways to stability when they come home by reforming military-to-civilian transitional services to ensure veterans can access the benefits they need for adjusting to civilian life, increasing funding and oversight for federal programs that help homeless or at-risk veterans, expanding and streamlining the VA Home Loan program that makes homeownership accessible, and establishing GI Bill parity for National Guard and Reserve members.
- Guarantee those who serve the country and their families have the food and healthcare they need by reversing cuts to SNAP and Medicaid, restoring ACA tax credits, allowing military children to remain on TRICARE until age 26, and supporting access to alternative pain medicines and non-drug therapies to combat opioid dependency;
- End the forever wars that put the military and military families in harm's way by stopping the new forever war in Iran and encouraging more cooperation with our foreign allies, including NATO and the EU;
- Support our Gold Star Families by passing the Love Lives On Act to ensure surviving spouses of fallen service members don't lose benefits if they remarry.
"The system has failed the Americans who put their lives on the line for us — resulting in skyrocketing rates of suicide and food insecurity, and challenges with homelessness, healthcare access, and employment," Talarico's news release stated. "We are also failing the military family members who sacrifice for our freedom. That’s why our campaign is unveiling a comprehensive policy agenda to support veterans and military families, ensuring they have access to the support they earned."
Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached via email at apowell@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Talarico unveils plan to support veterans in Texas US Senate race
