{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20140221200829/http://www.markudall.senate.gov/?p=blog&id=3844", "Standing Up for Our Heroes", "2013-11-11", "2013", "2013-11", "Democrat", "House", "CO", "Mark Udall", "U000038", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "Posted: Monday, November 11, 2013\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t Dear Fellow Coloradan, \nEvery November, we take time to honor our nation\u2019s veterans. But the sacrifices these heroes made for our liberty deserves much more than a single day of thanks. Millions of veterans nationwide \u2014 more than 400,000 of whom call Colorado home \u2014 risked their lives for our freedom. Our courageous troops spend each and every day keeping us safe and defending our freedoms, and we owe them a debt of gratitude that matches their sacrifice.\nVeterans Day gives us a unique opportunity to pause and commemorate their sacrifices, courage and dedication. This year, I had the honor to present service medals to a Vietnam veteran and the survivors of two heroes who are no longer with us. As the son of a World War II vet, I know how important it is for military families to know that their country recognizes and values their immense sacrifices.\nHowever, support for our troops and veterans needs to be much more than just symbolic. This year, political brinksmanship and a partisan government shutdown threatened our troops' paychecks and many of the benefits our veterans rely upon. Shortly before the federal government shutdown, I introduced the Military Pay Protection Act to make sure our troops would be paid on time, even if excessive partisanship grinds everything else to a halt. Later that month, I was also able to work out an agreement to restore veterans\u2019 access to routine surgical procedures in Grand Junction, so veterans on the Western Slope do not have to make costly and time-consuming trips to the Front Range for critical health services.\nUnfortunately these are not the only roadblocks that are keeping some of Colorado\u2019s veterans from receiving the care and respect they have earned. But I won\u2019t stop working to tear down these barriers. Currently, I\u2019m collaborating with Congressmen Mike Coffman to explore the issues faced by veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress and identify ways we can work across the aisle to improve services. I also am championing our veterans\u2019 ability to access the benefits they have earned by urging the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to cut through red tape and ease cumbersome new ID card requirements.\nAs chairman of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, the son of a veteran and a staunch supporter of Colorado\u2019s troops, I will continue to be a passionate advocate for veterans\u2019 rights. This Veterans Day, I ask you to join me in showing our appreciation for the veterans in our lives. And to those of you who are veterans yourselves, know that you continue to have our deepest gratitude for your sacrifices for this county and we sincerely thank you for your service.\nWarm regards,", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20140221200829/http://www.markudall.senate.gov/?p=blog&id=3844"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3641209807246923, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}