the v.a. and d.o.d. and the administration and congress all understand how important this is, and this is only one aspect of providing veterans benefits, and that's the backlog. if we want to focus on that, we can see that currently the v.a. backlog is about 35 ,000. that's not a number. that's not a stack. those are individual members who have worn the uniform in this country, 351 americans. we may talk about it in numbers or in claims or in files or in warning loads that are overwhelming our v.a. regional offices and the american legion service officers that are nationwide providing assistance to veterans filing their claims. scommoip what do these claims consist of? what is an average claim for? guest: it's for an injury or illness that can be attributed to their service. so what the claims process does, what the american legion does, we open our doors for regional offices. we have hundreds of service officers that are accredited through the american legion who provide free service to vetera

the years. that gives v.a. the ability to decrease their work force when necessary and keep those that are productive. >> my time is expired. in them this year's independent budget, you included we mustendation that develop a new metrics to measure the performance at every level of the claims processing system based upon a scientific method of projecting workloads, resources, requirements, and allocations. provide some examples of the performance measures you believe should be instituted? >> i will defer the question to the staff. bewe believe there should progressive messick's -- metrics with transparency so that we can sure the ca are meeting their needs and making sure that it is more than just production goals, but also quality goals. themll continue to watch closely and make them accountable for those benchmarks. -- ife is a saying you can't measure it, you can't measure. all part of the claims process should be counted in order to be measured? you can get a lot of claims out the door, but the accuracy rate

the v.a. .o.d. and the administration and congress all understand how important this is, and this is only one aspect of providing veterans benefits, and that's the backlog. if we want to focus on that, we can see that currently the v.a. backlog is about 35 ,000. that's not a number. that's not a stack. those are individual members who have worn the uniform in this country, 351 americans. we may talk about it in numbers or in claims or in files or in warning loads that are overwhelming our v.a. regional offices and the american legion service officers that are nationwide providing assistance to veterans filing their claims. scommoip what do these claims consist of? what is an average claim for? guest: it's for an injury or illness that can be attributed to their service. so what the claims process does, what the american legion does, we open our doors for regional offices. we have hundreds of service officers that are accredited through the american legion who provide free service to veterans. i

and you know, and thousands of veterans, the v.a. finds thousands of veterans a year that finally report military sexual trauma. and i don't have the exact numbers, but i know it's alarming. so it's, you know, you know, taking it out of the chain of command, you know, i've talked to some active duty commanders, and they have specifically said, if i don't have to deal with a sexual assault and i can continue with going on with what my mission is to, you know, make the unit ready, and deal with these everyday problems of what needs done and whatever their command is, whether it be engineering, mode of transport, they would like to do that, concentrate on that. because a sexual assault is more or less a burden on the command. and then it creates a morale problem. and a cohesion problem. so, you know, it's -- it's just, you know, that's the only thing i can -- i can think of that would, you know, get that -- you know, you know, going back to my testimony where it says, you know, that sapro official made the comment that, you know, let's t

we are dealing with an issue that the v.a. in the last several years has transformed their claims system going from paper to digital. we think we are making some progress. how do we make sure we continue that process so that every veteran in this country gets their claim adjudicated in a timely manner. we need to ensure that the proper number of -- continue to be built and maintained. so we have a whole whole lot of issues facing us. these are tough times for the veterans community, coming out of two wars dealing with all the veterans from world war ii, korea, vietnam. we are not going to turn our banks on those veterans. i want to thank the v. a. it is very easy to beat up on the v.a. because they are big, they are bureaucrat, and they are public, so that every problem they have, which is many, we run 151 medical centers, i'm sure there is a problem in every one every day, and often they get on the front pages, and we forget that mr. veterans are accessing them in a roud manner. our job is to keep the v.a. moving forward. that

that is where the v.a. management accountability act comes in. this bill would give the v.a.the authority it needs to fix things. it will bring in people who will clean it up. otherwise all the -- in the world will not help. this is a big step in the right direction. as we speak this bill is under consideration by our committee. it continues to pick up bipartisan support. already we have seen the backing of house speaker john boehner and key organizations. today we are reaching out to the president and to all americans. each of us has a stake in solving this problem. all the things we say about owing our veterans a debt of gratitude, all the promises we make to take care of them, to support them, the v.a. exists to turn those words into actions. america is a grateful nation. we cannot allow anyone or anything to get in the way of that. the federal backlog should never have appeared in the same sentence. let's make that our mission and work. god bless those that serve and god bless the united states of america. >> tomorrow on c-span, a republican s

v.a. all our required to complete a mandatory training on mst. the support team hosts monthly training calls open to all v.a. staff on topics related to mst. and sexualsuicide trauma has also been included. in addition, as part of the strong commitment to provide high-quality mental health care, specificlimited evidence-based psychotherapy for ptsd and other mental health conditions. because ptsd, depression, and anxiety are commonly associated with mst, these initiatives are very important means of expanding access to evidence-based treatment. recognizing the strong link between sexual trauma and risk for suicide, the national support team has an ongoing collaboration with the v.a. veterans crisis line. current efforts include the development of specialized materials to further enhance all crisis line staff knowledge of specific issues and facilitate sensitive and effective handling of calls from veterans who have experienced mst. complementing these efforts of a local level, coordinators have been encouraged to develop working relationship with the

monk and the v.a. is sympathetic and supportive of his situation, but obviously can't change his discharge. that's solely within your power. and i continue to be confident, by the way, in your commitment to our veterans and our troops. i continue to have tremendous respect and admiration for your record of service and your commitment to them. and this comment on my part is not by way of criticism. i know you have a loft things on your mind and it's been a busy year, but i'm asking for your commitment now. >> senator, thank you, and thank you for your generous comments. you have my absolute commitment. matter of fact i asked our general counsel yesterday about this lawsuit. i assume you're referring to the larger vietnam veterans of america -- >> exactly. >> i took note of it. i asked our general counsel to get back to me this week on it. i will get into it. i will get the specifics, our staff will get the specifics on mr. monk from your staff, but i have already addressed the larger issue and taken a lo

as it currently stands, the v.a. handles sexual assault in the military similar to civilian cases. but it is critical to note psychologically they are very different. i have found that it is much closer psychologically to the results of incest. and should be treated as such. as a civilian sexual assault does not address the inherent trust victims give their command, nor the betrayal of that trust when a sexual assault occurs. and the subsequent case is mishandled. this continues to be true even if the case is handled properly. survivors of sexual assault, like many others, suffer from ptsd, are rarely in a state emotionally, financially or otherwise to navigate the complex and detailed paperwork and procedures that the v.a. requires for rating. this paperwork barrier receives -- receiving assistance often exacerbates the survivor's issues and all too often driving them to the point of poverty, homelessness, alcohol and drug abuse, and much, much more. rather than proper counseling, it is often the case that medications are prescribed, many times pills are almost immediately prescri

>> i am best -- this looks like it is coming from the ptsd website which is a v.a. entity. i am thinking research wise that types ofnly know the reactions people get after experiences of sexual assault are pivotal in their recovery. we know it is the biggest and strongest predictors of their recovery afterward. i think the systemic response is the support from family friends more generally is going to strongly shape someone's recovery after something like this. >> thank you all for testifying. i am extremely grateful for the hard work you are doing and extremely grateful you have taken it upon yourself with the dod and v.a. to meet the needs of these survivors. i know this is a hard and difficult road ahead of us but i trust your commitment and i'm for the commitment because you are the difference between the men and women receiving commitment and not. thank you for your service and thank you for being here today. >> more now on the situation in ukraine from reuters which reports nato ambassadors are holding an emergency meeting to discuss the situation in ukraine. meeting,

. >> if the v.a. is failing to meet its obligations to veterans is it wise to extend its mission further? of course not. >> jon: the v.a. is wasteful often ineffective. this is true. adds to the debt for this bill. those are things that these senators didn't worry about in 2008 when they voted to continue funding the iraq war despite the pentagon being unable to account for $15 billion worth of (bleep) we bought. that was different. when you are away from home you are allowed to splurge. you are on a war-cation. [ laughter ] we've got veterans condemning this vote. >> the american legion saying there was a right way to vote and a wrong way to vote today. 41 senators voted wrong today. inexcusable. i don't know how anyone could look a veteran in the eye and justify that vote. >> jon: the trick is they don't look them in the eye. they look right here. it's so much easier to (bleep) people over when you just look at the forehead. can i get a nun out here? let's get a nun out here. [cheers and applause] h

at the v.a. it's been quite the opposite. for all the incompetence we've seen and all the lives that have been lost, the evidence shows there's been no accountability. only half measures and slaps on the wrist. an agency which has fallen down the job -- at any agency that has fallen down on the job, this would be unacceptable. but to have it happen in the health care system for america's veterans? i think it's shameful. the v.a. is failing our veterans and their families and it's time we hold these people accountable and get people in there who can fix this backlog once and for all. i want to applaud chairman miller and the veterans affairs committee for their leadership and i'm pleased this legislation was already -- has already picked up the support of several veterans organizations and i would urge all of my colleagues to back this critical measure. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman

. >> we also see 58% of the veterans say the v.a. r fair job of dealing with their problems. one vet told the post he waited seven months just to see a doctor. we do know president obama has been pushing for more money, asking for a 3% increase in the next budget to nearly $164 billion, and under him, the v.a. budget has increased by 60%, but is the money the answer, i guess? >> well, it's part of it, and it's interesting you raise this backlog, my brother-in-law got out of the marines last year and filed his paperwork around november and so far all he's got is two letters saying we know you've submitted a claim and we're too backlogged to do anything about it. ultimately, money is a band aid approach to this and certainly something we need to be doing, but at the end of the day, we're going to have to make a strategic investment in the v.a., certainly, to upgrade i.t. infrastructure, so they can process these claims and work more closely together with the department of defense and really improve the rate at which they adjudicate thes

an estimated 8.9 million veterans receive health coverage through the v.a. yet they will still be counted as an employee in need of health coverage under the employer mandate. this is a commonsense bill simply saying that a veteran who already has coverage through tricare or the v.a. cannot be counted twice. you're either someone in need of health insurance or you are not. i introduced the hire more heroes act last year in response to an issue raised at one of my veterans rizz i have -- advisory board meetings by brad, the superintendent of the madison county veterans assistant commission. that commission does a great work by providing sever services to approximately 35,000 veterans in southwestern illinois, including helping those veterans find employment. although veterans returning from combat have five years to sign up for tricare, they are returning to an economy full of hiring freezes, layoffs and unemployment rates above 9%. the unemployment rate for post-9/11 veterans jumped from 7.9% in january to 9.2% in february. our veterans deserve more. we know

. >> reporter: the v.a. id that it is addressing the unique problems which lead female vets into homelessness. >> female veterans do present with more depression, anxiety disorder and trauma, ptsd. these all sort of combine to form almost a perfect storm that does put these women more at risk. >> reporter: the veteran's administration is playing catchup and is now building housing for women with children and those who live alone including homeless facilities with locked quarters integrated by gender for safety. >> this is my room. my bed. no more sleeping in the car. [♪ singing ] >> with the help of the g.i. bill erica will graduate with an accounting degree. >> i feel like nothing can stop me. i'm a train forcing through life. >> reporter: with thousands more women like erica coming home from war the v.a. promises to end homelessness by 2015 is going to be a challenge. carol mckinley, al jazeera, denver. >> pope francis and president obama will meet tomorrow coming up how both are taking on economic inequali

jackie lower ski talks about a bill she cosponsored to fix a backlog at the v.a.. >> i'm jill biden. i am filling in for president obama, who is abroad. i want to talk about the minimum wage and the overwhelming need to raise the minimum wage. there's no reason in the world why one american has to live in poverty. and --r at the federal federal minimum wage makes $14,000. --t is hard enough realm enough for an individual to live on. would be making $20,200 per year. he would earn enough to bring that family out of poverty. not only would it put more hard-earned money into the pockets of 28 million americans, many millions of them would be pulled out of poverty, it is also good for business. let me tell you why. there is clear data that shows had the benefit of their -- of least turnover and more productivity. the minimum wage would generate an additional $19 billion in additional income for people who need it the most. the big difference between giving a raise and the minimum wage is instead of a tax break to the wealthy, they are living on the edge. needed to pay their electric bill,

this would have allowed someone like me to go to the v.a. for ten years, and that's why so many veteran groups supported that bill. >> john, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> up next, a surprise statement from the president prompts the question is russia invading ukraine as we speak and if so, what should we do or not do about it? that's coming up. get the it card and see your fico® credit score. [ car alarm chirps ] ♪ [ male announcer ] we don't just certify our pre-owned vehicles. we inspect, analyze, and recondition each one, until it's nothing short of a genuine certified pre-owned mercedes-benz for the next new owner. [ car alarm chirps ] hurry in to the mercedes-benz certified pre-owned sales event. visit today for exceptional offers. ♪ it's not for colds, it's not for pain, it's just for sleep. because sleep is a beautiful thing™. ♪ zzzquil. the non-habit forming sleep aid from the makers of nyquil®. >>> down in florida, gators dockside, a chain of businesses is working to comply with the obamacare work. they are indeed charging thei

. >> the v.a. ent almost $500 million on ptsd treatment for veterans of the iraq and afghanistan wars last year. but their family members the v.a. spokeswoman informed us by e-mail, may receive counseling if determined to be essential to the effective treatment and readjustment of the veteran. in other words, veteran's kids who have psychological issues are largely on their own if they get help at all. do you walk out the door and put on an act, the normal act? >> every day. it's like putting on a shirt now. it's incredibly easy. just walk outside, put on a smile. >> my mom would ask me not to talk about the things that were happening with my father. in fact if my mom mention the world "vietnam" it's with a whisper. >> soldier's kids can be collateral damage in our nation's wars all their lives. >> very suicidal. very depressed, very angry, anxiety-rid den. >> crystal was 30 years old before she dared to do what terrified her most. she asked her father, a vietnam veteran with ptsd to talk to her abo

and the v.a. and use the electronic medical health record system so when someone gets in, when somebody gets out the records follow them oufplt there is not so much of rivalry dogging the individual. >> we could talk about v.a.'s attempt at creating a digital system so v.a. claims could be processed without paper. we want to see that success. that success is only going to occur if d.o.d. and v.a. create an electronic medical health record system that actually works. they started one about a year ago and they abandoned that process without telling the veteran community they were going to or even why. we're in full support of it. we want to support v.a. we want to support d.o.d. because those individuals who were waiting have earned it. what we want to see is d.o.d. and v.a. come together, develop an electronic medical health record system that will allow us to produce an electronic based system that will keep veterans from waiting years for the benefits they've earned through service to this country

you have more research being done sponsored by the pentagon and v.a. you have new programs put into place by the department of veterans affairs. a very generous post-9/11g.i. bill sending many of the veterans off to college to compete in the workforce. the military is putting in initiatives to ease the transition, particularly as the overall force draws down because of budget cuts. but, you know, the discussion we're having here i think is essential and one that speaks to the real challenge facing our senior most policy makers and defense leaders because we on the one hand have a sacred obligation as a nation to care for them. and one needs to high light the needs so the appropriate resources can be made available in washington and get to those people. so you have to be truthful in the damage and in the scars that have been created by 12 years of war. >> ifill: do you think it makes it harder for them to get a job? >> this is the fine line because, at the same time, this is not a broken group of people. a third are suffering from ptsd but two-thirds are

what kinds of programs does the v.a. have in terms of debt forgiveness or whatever it may be to attract primary care physicians to handle the problems that center more and raised? moran raised. >> i will talk specifically about debt forgiveness. we have a retention bonuses and recruitment bonuses. that allowe buyouts people to make a move. we have quite a bit of flexibility in terms of salary. are competitive and flexible. that could be higher. i will just be blunt. there are not many instances where you need to do that. the cost is not particularly extensive. it can be a great incentive who is carrying up to hundred thousand dollars worth of educational debt coming out of college and medical school to be able to have a good portion of that forgiven. >> the department of defense sends people to medical school and then get x number of years after your life after you graduate. >> they do. we have a program that is not unlike that. the difficulty is you can't predict where they are going to go. it would be wonderful if he co

. >> how the v.a. is addressing problems leading to female veterans homelessness. >> it will rip your hands wide open. on top of that, they to have look out for the mother crock. >> a crock do it hunt one of the only options to curtail a booming population. >> the big dance is back with four games tonight and tomorrow. why two of those will be truly historic. >> welcome back, i'm del walters, these are our top stories. the president on day four of his european tour spent the morning at the vatican meeting with pope francis. they spoke for 50 minutes. the president holding meetings today with italian president and prime minister. >> bad weather suspending the search for missing malaysia airlines flight 370. new satellite images out of thailand spot 300 objects in the indian ocean. investigators chasing new leads that the captain may be responsible for the crash. "u.s.a. today" reporting he may have changed the plane's course and there is no evidence of a mechanical failure or highjacking. >> the search f

the white house announced grants for a $2.3 million wind turbine expected to cut electric bills at the v.a reports despite a projected 2011 completion date, the turbine still does not work, and right now no one is doing anything to fix it. a v.a. spokesman says they are embarrassed the turbine does not work. >>> and finally green is the new red this spring when it comes to grading tests. teachers in mounts bay academy in the united kingdom have been told to throw out their red pens because red is, quote, a very negative color. instead, they will grade in green and leave positive comments as they go. this is not the first school to ban red to spare student feelings over harsh markings but an education expert says students actually prefer red ink because it's easier to read. >>> the search for flight 370 is now in its 13th day, and with american resources increasingly going towards that effort questions are now being asked about the search itself. here's national security correspondent jennifer griffith. >> reporter: the best lead has come from a private satellite search company, digital glo

the v.a. is ready to break ground, move forward and build these expanded community-based clinics to serve areas around the country and veterans around the country in a much better way. i'm particularly interested because two of those 27 clinics are in louisiana. in lafayette and in lake charles. madam president, all of these clinics have gotten stuck in the mud through several rounds of bureaucratic delays at the v.a.. funding delays, authorization delays, and a dispute about whether moving forward with these clinics was kosher under the budget rules or not. we have solved all of those problems. we have figured out solutions to all of those problems that satisfies everyone, and the u.s. house of representatives has taken those solutions, put them together in a bill and passed it overwhelmingly out of the u.s. house, with over 400 votes in support. virtually unanimous. now we hear on the senate floor, and all we have to do is take that bill, adopt a simple noncontroversial amendment and pass it

awhile to find somebody you click with the and it can be challenging to find a good environment is the v.a. medical center is now working there are a lot of avenues to see kelp and one of them will work for you. you can find a new normal prayer not just with ptsd but post traumatic gross. i firmly believe it is only because i saw horrible things and experienced than i am able to appreciate how privilege we are in america fully as i do. i am more connected to my fellow humans because i have seen them at their worst. it has given me a better capacity to appreciate them that their best. >> i have a question. talk about the process of reading the book he describes so vividly with a lot of dialogue events that were clearly painful over a decade. were you keep being notes or have a photographic memory? >> i have always ben day journaler writing journal entry santa paulsen when i decided to write this book i interviewed people i was not on the bus when brian got hurt and i interviewed people who were on the bus to get their sense because his memories are a little spotty of that event. he intervie

rose, as i understand it, you eventually went to the v.a. next morning, and what did you find was wrong? >> well, when i went in, they thought that i also was having a stroke, and then after running some tests, they realized that it was bells palsy, which is an inflammation of the nerves, and it's partial paralysis of one side of the face, so that night i didn't go because of the situation that occurred within the ambulance between respondents, and so my face being paralyzed, one of my eyes doesn't close, so i suffered some unnecessary, you know, eye damage, like a scratch on my cornea because i had to wait till the next day to go and before i started taking medication, so it was just not a good thing, and it's, yeah. >> it's unimaginable. i want to let the audience know the fire chief, kenneth ellerby, says that any instance where a patient feels uncomfortable by the presence of our members who are sworn to protect them is unacceptable. we also know that the union president representing the civilian ems provider said the emts on the basic u

all the things we say about honoring your veterans, all the promises we make to take care of them, the v.a. exists to turn those words into actions. america is a grateful nation. we cannot allow anything or anyone to get in the way of that. that are in an backlog should never appear in the same sentence. let's make that our mission. let's go to work. thank you. god bless those who serve. god bless the united states of america. >> next, a house hearing on the 2015 budget request for the capitol police. then the fbi director james call comey.james then your comments and calls on washington journal at 7:00 a.m.. >> c-span. for 35 years, bringing public affairs events from washington directly to you. putting you in the room at hearings, white house events, briefings and conferences. and offering complete gavel to gavel coverage of the house. all as a public service. we are c-span. greeted by cable tv 35 years ago and brought to you as a public service by your cable or satellite provider. like us on hd, facebook, and follow us on twitter. monday, the police chief testified before a subcommittee

. >> with thousands more women like erica coming home from war the v.a. promised to end homelessness by 2015 is going to be a challenge. carol mckinley, al jazeera, denver coming up, buddhist in myanmar setting villages on fire and killing muslims because of a warning that muslims will destroy their way of life. anand an american man is caughtp in the middle of the crisis. we have reports from myanmar next. >> at myanmar opens up to the west it's facing big obstacles to fledgling democracy. violence began three years ago when men were convicted for raping a buddhist woman. it has ballooned into an international crisis leaving hundreds dead and thousands more displaced. the most effected are muslim. roxana saberi traveled to myanmar and met an american who is caught in the middle of the conflict. >> jack rendler moved to a myanmar to teach buddhist monks english. he wound up teaching them about democracy and human rights, too. he wants them to respect muslims, but this is turning out harder than he thought. [ bells ] >> mornings at the monk monastery begin

there is a significant drop in suicide rates for veterans within the v.a. ystem, from the estimated 22 deaths per day to only 5. there should be no reason why veterans who want help can't get it. now, to a story of survival from iraq and a man with one of the most most critical jobs in war, the unique danger he had to confront every day. [ male announcer ] bob's heart attack didn't come with a warning. today his doctor has him on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. worried shampooing might damage your hair? don't be. new pantene brings new repair & protect. first ever pro-v antioxidant systems. clinically proven to make hair healthier. healthier with every wash. healthier looking hair every day? i can get used to this. new hair... new you. new repair & protect from new pantene. hair so healthy you shine. >>> welcome back to "taking the hill." i'm patrick murphy. in this installment of "wounded: the battle back home," we meet an army st

well i think what we can say is certainly clear is that you know the v.a. nd the government does not have the veterans rights to health care and veterans' benefits at heart the soldiers are not seen as the protectors of this country or the tip of the speed of literal freedom or democracy but as soldiers to be sent and fight in wars that benefit the rich and that benefit wall street and when we come home from these wars we're expected to reintegrate into society with minimal benefits my experience from the v.a. has been that many times the v.a. in the same way that our entire health care system in this country revolves around is not there to provide services with the budgets it's given but to deny services so the dod budget can then go towards the pharmaceutical companies towards the you know g.e. making weird video games for millions of costing millions of dollars that they want soldiers to go through and all this fund. that is supposed to go towards healing veterans when they come home is really just going to the pharmaceutical companies or these companies

specifically, the need to move forward with 27 fully approved, fully authorized v.a. clinics that have been stalled because of bureaucratic problems. now these -- again, these clinics are around the country. two are in louisiana, one in lafayette, one in lake charles. these clinics have been approved by the v.a., have been in their plan for some time. they are fully authorized. we thought they were fully paid for until, first, the v.a. made some bureaucratic mistakes to delay the lake charles and lafayette clinics in particular, and then out of the blue the c.b.o. changed wait they score all of these clinics and all of these issues and created another bureaucratic hurdle. mr. president, again the good news is we came together in a bipartisan way and have a solution to those purely bureaucratic hurdles so that all of these clinics can move forward expeditiously. the house specifically passed a bill that would do that, that would take care of these bureaucratic hurdles. they passed it on the consent calendar by a whopping bipartisan margin. and so i come to the floor, mr

ed, there was a bill in the senate supported by every veteran service organization, 22 billion to the v.a. and republicans voted against it yet want to spend money on missile defense. the bush administration response in georgia was weak, and in fact, president bush relied on the french to cut a deal with russians. it been a long process that's led us to the point through multiple administrations and i think the president has made the right decision because until we've given diplomacy a chance, we shouldn't be engaged military. >> john soltz, thank you. >>> the american steel industry is the best in the world. the investment, u.s. steel puts into creating the highest quality product pumps jobs and money back into the local economy. more from our series coming up, fighting chance, american steel. the big 10.10 support grows. business leaders are pushing back. hey guys! sorry we're late. did you run into traffic? no, just had to stop by the house to grab a few things. you stopped by the house? uh-huh. yea. alright, whenever you get your stuff, run upstairs, get cleaned up for dinner. you lea

i wasn't in control until i went to the v.a. and just turned myself in. >> did they help you?> oh, yeah. that's why i'm silent right now. they've got a lot of soldiers that need help with this ptsd. and i know if it can work for me it can work for the rest of them. >> i'm just struck looking at this picture of you, this bright eyed kid from oklahoma, the whole world ahead of him. knowing what you know now, would you do it all over again? >> i don't regret not one minute. if they told me i could go back in the military today, they need me, i would go. at my age. >> it's an honor to meet you, sir. thank you for your service. >> all right. >> thanks to my new friends at the cnn digital studio. the latest on flight 370 with don lemon starts now. >> good evening, everyone. this is a cnn special report. the mystery of flight 370. i'm don lemon. we have breaking news for you tonight. planes are in the air right now, searching the southern indian ocean for traces of flight 370. britain's telegraph is reporting it has a transcript of 54 minutes of communication between the cockpit and

i wasn't in control until i went to the v.a. and just turned myself in. >> did they help you?>> oh, yeah. that's why i'm silent right now. they've got a lot of soldiers that need help with this ptsd. and i know if it can work for me it can work for the rest of them. >> i'm just struck looking at this picture of you, this bright eyed kid from oklahoma, the whole world ahead of him. knowing what you know now, would you do it all over again? >> i don't regret not one minute. if they told me i could go back in the military today, they need me, i would go. at my age. >> it's an honor to meet you, sir. thank you for your service. >> all right. >> thanks to my new friends at the cnn digital studio. the latest on flight 370 with don lemon starts now. >> good evening, everyone. this is a cnn special report. the mystery of flight 370. i'm don lemon. we have breaking news for you tonight. planes are in the air right now, searching the southern indian ocean for traces of flight 370. britain's telegraph is reporting it has a transcript of 54 minutes of communication between the cockpit and

all the things we say, all the promises we make to take care of them and to take care of them, the v.a. wants to turn of words into action. america is a grateful nation. we cannot allow anything or anyone to get any way of that. the words veteran and backlog should not appear in the same sentence. let's make that our mission. thank you. god bless those who served. god bless the united states of america. discussion about the reasons behind terrorism. then representatives from the national basketball association talk about sports and diplomacy. then we talked about the backlog -- backlog of veterans claims. are desperate a book on the topic and previously taught at a military base in belgium. his research was cited by the supreme court. groupim civil liberties asked to cancel the event. this is one hour 20 minutes. >> good evening -- from the campus of embry riddle aeronautical university, welcome to the president's speaker series. on behalf of the president, i am marc bernier, the moderator for tonight's event. tonight, the 15 reasons for terrorism. we will talk to an expert on this sub

management accountability act that will allow the v.a. secretary to fire bad managers. d at v.a. for all the problems we've talked about a lot. this will allow them to be fired to create accountability so we can start getting the actions we want. >> thafrpbgs,ç -- thanks, pete. >> 20 minutes after the top of the hour. coming in hot, this plane comes in for a landing without the landing gear in the front. we're going to show you how that all turned out. >> and have you seen this. >> i'm placing $57,000 in this briefcase for the mayor to secure licensing permits. >> that movie scene playing out in real life. right now democrats caught red handed with the democrat attorney general refusing to prosecute? we're on the case. ♪ ♪ [announcer] who could resist the call... ...of america's number-one puppy food brand... ...with dha and essential nutrients also found in mother's milk. purina puppy chow. ♪ ♪ ♪ great. this is the last thing i need.) seriously? the last thing you need is some guy giving you a new catalytic converter when all you got is a loose gas cap. what? it is tha

v.a. in the same way that our entire health care system in this country revolves around is not there to provide services with the budgets it's given but to deny services so that the budget can then go towards the pharmaceutical companies towards the g.e. making weird video games for millions of costing millions of dollars that they want soldiers to go through and all this funding that is supposed to go towards healing veterans when they come home is really just going to the pharmaceutical companies or these companies ryan let's talk about the horrific failed state of iraq today according to the u.n. over seven hundred people were killed just last month two thousand and fourteen as the highest civilian death toll since the height of the occupation do you think this violence is a direct result of the u.s. war and how do you personally feel seen the radical factions that you were told to fight retake cities like fallujah and ramadi. well i think that what this is certainly shows is that while the wa

and they contacted the v.a. s in the appeals process, we'll get to him when we can. >> huh. what does that mean when they can? at this point, just to recap, how long has it been since you first filed? >> i filed the first time in august of 2010. >> okay. so it's been 3 1/2 years since you first filed. >> right. >> and have they given you a sense how many more years it will be until they respond to you? >> well, i went into appeals, it's been in appeals for two years. and they told -- they give me a timeframe of 503 days. well, today is day 644. and i still haven't gotten a response and they can't tell me why i haven't had a response. >> so the crisis in ukraine happened a few weeks ago and immediately the u.s. government is sending over a billion dollars to the ukrainians. what do you notice that when people need food stamps, they get them instan takes youly, government aides get money instantaneously and you're still waiting? >> it is frustrating. last year we gave all this money in tanks and aircraft to egypt.

monk and the v.a. is sympathetic and supportive of the situation but discharge.ge his that is solely within your power and i am confident in your commitment to our veterans and our troops. i continue to have tremendous aspect and admiration for your record of service and your commitment to them. this comment on my part is not by way of criticism. i know you have a lot of things on your mind and it has been a to z year but i am looking -- asking for your commitment now. >> thank you and thank you for your generous comments. you have my absolute commitment. i asked our general counsel yesterday about this lawsuit. i assume you are referring to the larger vietnam veterans of america. >> exactly. >> i took note of it. i asked our general counsel to get back to me this week on it. i will get into it. get the specifics and our staff will get the specifics. the already addressing larger issue and taking a look at it and i will do it personally. thank you. let me briefly deal with the interoperability of the me

awhile to find somebody you click with the and it can be challenging to find a good environment is the v.a. medical center is now working there are a lot of avenues to see kelp and one of them will work for you. you can find a new normal prayer not just with ptsd but post traumatic gross. i firmly believe it is only because i saw horrible things and experienced than i am able to appreciate how privilege we are in america fully as i do. i am more connected to my fellow humans because i have seen them at their worst. it has given me a better capacity to appreciate them that their best. >> i have a question. talk about the process of reading the book he describes so vividly with a lot of dialogue events that were clearly painful over a decade. were you keep being notes or have a photographic memory? >> i have always ben day journaler writing journal entry santa paulsen when i decided to write this book i interviewed people i was not on the bus when brian got hurt and i interviewed people who were on the bus to get their sense because his memories are a little spotty of that event. he intervie