Hillary Clinton Supports Veterans

As the campaign to bring the troops home from Iraq hots up in Congress this week, Hillary Clinton is focusing on their welfare when they make it home. Given that over 20,000 troops have been injured in Iraq alone, the welfare of troops will be a central issue for the coming Presidential campaign.

Clinton gave a speech yesterday to the Center for American Progress, and called for better training, and also better care when troops return home.

She laid out a number of key points to her plan:

IMPROVING MENTAL HEALTH CARE: In her speech, Hillary proposed improving the screening process for our troops before they deploy to better track mental health conditions and cases of post-traumatic stress disorder. She also proposed a measure to provide assistance to families struggling to care for a loved one with psychological and brain injuries.

FIXING THE DISABILITY SYSTEM: To deal with the high number of disability claims being rejected, Hillary proposed an independent review of denied claims to help veterans get the benefits they deserve.

TAKING CARE OF ORPHANS: To ensure that the children of single parents killed in combat are cared for, Hillary proposed allowing soldiers to designate someone to receive their benefits and care for their children.

A NEW GI BILL OF RIGHTS: In the coming weeks, Hillary will announce a new GI Bill of rights that will expand opportunities for veterans to get a college education, afford their own home and start small businesses.