Jeb Bush Campaign Press Release - Honoring Those Who Served. Rebuilding Our Armed Forces

At the core of America's military strength are the men and women who volunteer to serve in our Armed Forces.

We have no greater asset than our service members or greater responsibility than ensuring they are well provided for — while they are in uniform and throughout their lives.

Recent revelations of grave conditions at facilities throughout the Department of Veterans Affairs' health care system have brought to light the failed leadership of the Obama Administration to serve those who have served our nation.

Reforming the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), fixing the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), and improving services to veterans across the board must be a top priority for the next President of the United States.

While veterans' benefits have rightly been protected from the Budget Control Act and Sequestration, the impact has still been felt at VA facilities. Active duty members of the armed forces (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force) hit a high point in 2010 with 1.4 million members. Under current defense cuts, it is set to drop to 1.2 million by 2019.

Put plainly, that means an additional 190,000 troops will be shed on top of natural attrition over the next four years. This is a heavy swell of new potential VA users.

While the military cuts should be reversed for purely strategic security reasons, the fact stands that the sheer number of service members leaving service is overwhelming the VA. The Pentagon needs more soldiers and the VA is inundated with new veterans. Ending the rapid troop drawdown is a simple, pragmatic solution to both problems.

I assure you the day I am elected President of the United States will be the day that we turn this around, and begin rebuilding the armed forces of the United States of America. — Jeb Bush

I assure you the day I am elected President of the United States will be the day that we turn this around, and begin rebuilding the armed forces of the United States of America. — Jeb Bush