Friend,

For those of you who have served, are currently serving, or have a family member or loved one in the armed forces, thank you. Veterans Day is an acknowledgment of the sacrifices our soldiers, veterans, and military families make in service to our nation. We hold your service in the highest esteem.

I’m an eighth-generation Georgian on my mom’s side, with a dad whose Air Force service brought him from Coggon, Iowa where he was raised to Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, Georgia as a teenager.

As mayor of Columbus, I’ve worked alongside active duty and reserve personnel at Fort Benning. Ending veteran homelessness was one of my top priorities as mayor of Columbus, and we reduced it by 95% while achieving “net-zero” with available housing so that every veteran in Columbus could have a roof over their heads, no matter if they had a substance abuse disorder or mental illness.

In the Senate, I will hold that institution to fulfill its constitutional obligation to vote on any actions that might put our troops in harm’s way, starting with the 18-year long war in Afghanistan. I will push to fully fund the Department of Veterans Affairs so that there is greater efficiency, faster enrollment, more doctors and mental health professionals, and expanded options for rural healthcare. I will fight tooth and nail to keep the VA from being privatized because profit motives should never trump the health and well-being of our veterans.

Endorse my plan for Veterans Affairs to say that you’re with me, and together we can build a better government to honor our obligations to soldiers, veterans, and their families.