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Amend HCR 75 by striking the resolution and substituting the
following:
WHEREAS, We support our men and women in the armed forces 100
percent. We salute them for their sacrifice on behalf of our
nation. We thank them for their willingness to risk their lives;
and
WHEREAS, Even as we praise our servicemen and women, we
regret that the President of the United States has ordered them to
start a preemptive war fought without international support; and
WHEREAS, We believe a preemptive, unilateral war is unworthy
of the honor and tradition of the U.S. military. Our armed forces
should not be invading and occupying other countries; and
WHEREAS, The House Budget Committee voted to cut the
Department of Veterans Affairs' budget by $14 billion over the next
10 years; and
WHEREAS, The House Budget Committee voted to cut the Impact
Aid program that supports the education of soldiers' children by
$204 million; and
WHEREAS, The Bush Administration ordered the Department of
Veterans Affairs to limit veterans' access to healthcare and
benefits by ordering VA to stop publicizing the availability of
benefits; and
WHEREAS, In the last Gulf War, veterans were exposed to the
fall out from destroyed chemical weapons, ammunition depots, oil
fires, depleted uranium and experimental drugs resulting in the
disabling of more than 163,000 veterans, and;
WHEREAS, Despite the requirements of the 1997 Force Health
Protection law (Public Law 105–85), the Department of Defense is
repeating the mistakes from 1991 by failing to identify who went to
war, their exposures, and their health consequences; and,
WHEREAS, An offensive war and budget cuts demonstrate that
Congress and the President have thus far failed to provide support
for veterans and families of active duty troops and reservists;
now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, We call for an increase in government spending for
veterans and higher pay and benefits for service members and their
families; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That we urge our government to adopt a foreign
policy that achieves victory through diplomacy and engagement with
the United Nations and democracies rather than resorting to war as
the first option to resolve disputes. Avoiding and ending
unnecessary combat in Iraq is the best way to support our troops and
ensure their safe and speedy return home; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the
senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the
Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this
resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.