AnnouncementNewsStatementEnd War and Take Care of our Veterans

January 9, 2018
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In the past six months I’ve seen Republicans and Democrats point fingers at each other when it comes to homelessness.  We may not all have the same solutions but we all know something needs to get done, especially when it comes to the brave veterans who fought to defend our country.

Here are a few compelling statistics (according to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans).
  • About 11% of the adult homeless population are veterans.  9% are female, the large majority are male.
  • Roughly 45% of all homeless veterans are African American or Hispanic, despite only accounting for 10.4% and 3.4% of the U.S. veteran population, respectively.
  • Nearly half of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam era.

Equally as upsetting as the above statistics is the fact that 1.4 million more veterans are considered at risk of homelessness due to poverty, lack of support networks, and dismal living conditions in overcrowded or substandard housing.

When we stop and consider what these men and women have done for our country, we need to stop acting like the “other” party is the reason for our problems.  Our veterans are our finest and deserve better than this.  Some solutions I will offer to the discussion…

  •  Create Government-Funded facilities in which the homeless may reside in transition for six months and offer programs to help them.
  •  Work closely with non-profit organizations to assist the homeless.
  • Work with colleges and schools to create educational programs on weekends to help the homeless receive educational needs to get back in to the workforce.
  • Work with medical facilities at down times to care for those homeless with medical needs.
  • Incentivize corporations to hire those qualified who have been rendered homeless.

As a United States Congressman I would never hesitate to listen to anyone who comes to me with a good idea on how to assure our Veterans are protected, kept from being at-risk from becoming homeless, and given the best medical treatment possible.  More than ever, we have leaders on both sides of the aisles recognizing that a key way to prevent this from happening, is to stop these “Endless Wars!”

Democratic Presidential Candidates and President Trump alike have called for dramatic changes in how and why we deploy our military.  While we must always be ready and wiling to defend our nature, our goals must be clear, concise, and expeditious as possible.  And when our troops return home, we must be ready with medical, psychological, additional and occupational training.  If anything should be a bipartisan cause, it should be honoring our troops.

Our commitment can’t be an “on the fly” program, we must make this a lifelong commitment to those who serve.  If we want to have the strongest military in the world, our commitment to assuring their good health upon return must be equal to the task.

Just before the Christmas Holiday, another brave solider was killed in Afghanistan.  Mr. President, let’s bring our troops home.  And to leaders on both sides of the aisle, let’s stop using our troops as political punching bags and get serious about taking care of our finest.

Ending these “Endless Wars” will save trillions of dollars, it will allow us to invest in our own infrastructure, our own healthcare systems, our own education and to the health of those who inevitably will have to go and fight for our nation at some point.  We can make a serious commitment to ending homelessness in America and taking care of our brave men and women in the armed forces.

The CA 17th has a proud history of raising soldiers who have fought to defend our country, let’s lead the charge in honoring them when they return.

I’d be honored by your support.

Ritesh Tandon
Candidate, United States House of Representatives
California Congressional District 17

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