It appears that there is no end to what Obama’s Veterans Administration will do to hurt our military veterans. VA employees falsified and destroyed records to cover the failure of facilities to provide treatment to hundreds, and perhaps thousands of veterans. This led to many unnecessary deaths of America’s heroes. At the same time the VA has been taking away the Constitutional rights of veterans, declaring them incompetent to handle their own financial affairs, and then denying them the right to own firearms.
Not satisfied with these outrages, the VA is now forcing the cancellation of the celebration of Christmas in VA hospitals around the country. This has actually been going on for several years and has been accelerating. I am currently mobilizing the resources of the United States Justice Foundation to fight what is happening. I am particularly familiar with what has transpired at four VA facilities in Texas.
I have been proud to support and work with a group in Dallas, Texas called Vet to Vet. It was formed 21 years ago by a good friend and fellow veteran named Jess Johnson and his wife Peggy to assist veterans in the VA hospitals in the area. It started out small with the taking of hamburgers and coffee to patients, but over the years grew into a major effort, covering four major facilities in Texas and Vet to Vet chapters being formed throughout the country.
The program in Dallas and the VA facilities in Bonham, Waco, and Temple, Texas has parties, bingo games, and barbeques throughout the year, but their major effort occurs on Christmas each year when they provide 4,000 gifts to over 1,600 patients. They also collected food donations and cooked and delivered Christmas dinners to hundreds of patients. Spiritual comfort is also provided and if patients request a bible one will be given to them.
For many veterans who have no family, this was the only Christmas they would get. Now, all of that is coming to an end. Several years ago VA officials began telling Jess and his organization that they could no longer give bibles to patients, wish them a Merry Christmas, or even use the word Christmas in the facilities, or mention Jesus Christ. Then a year later they told the group that they could no longer bring Christmas dinners to the facilities.
This is more than political correctness run amok. This is the unconstitutional denial of the freedom of religion to the very men and women who put their lives on the line to defend that freedom, as well as the rest of the Constitution. This is not just happening in Texas, it is nationwide. VA hospitals are banning Christmas trees, Christmas cards, and national military cemeteries in places like Houston, Texas have attempted to ban Christian prayers at the funerals of veterans, and even any mention of God or religion.
While investigating this outrage we are also hearing from veterans around the country about how the VA has turned the “Veterans Choice Program” into another VA scam defrauding veterans and risking their health and their lives. The law was passed by Congress in response to numerous verified reports of veterans dying because they could not get treatment at VA hospitals.
The law is supposed to allow veterans who live over 40 miles from a VA hospital or clinic to get health care locally and have it paid for by the VA. However, the program is helping few veterans, particularly if they have serious health problems. For example, veterans who have cancer or serious heart conditions and live over 40 miles from a VA hospital are being denied local treatment because the VA will claim that there is a VA “facility” within 40 miles of the veteran’s home. These may include VA dental clinics, or VA clinics that have the primary responsibility of making appointments at VA hospitals.
In neither case can a veteran get actual treatment for cancer, heart problems or other serious illnesses. These veterans are back where they started, having to travel long distances to VA hospitals where they still have problems even getting an appointment, much less actual treatment. Our government is not only dishonoring our veterans, but in some cases still killing them.
Michael Connelly
