Supporting our veterans is a commitment that transcends politics—it’s a matter of national honor. In this episode, host Fran Racioppi sits down with Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks, a 24-year Army Reserve veteran and representative for Iowa’s First Congressional District. Together, they explore critical issues facing veterans today, including the readiness of the VA to handle the influx of post-9/11 service members, mental health challenges, and the impact of the PACT Act. Congresswoman Miller-Meeks shares her unique perspective on veteran care, the importance of accountability within the VA, and the role Congress plays in ensuring our veterans receive the care and support they deserve. Check out our conversation then head over to our YouTube channel or your favorite podcast platform to catch all our coverage from the halls of Congress.
The opinions presented on the The Jedburgh Podcast and the Jedburgh Media Channel are the opinions of our guests and creator and host Fran Racioppi. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Green Beret Foundation and the Green Beret Foundation assumes no liability for their accuracy; nor does Green Beret Foundation endorse any political candidate or any political party.
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You are front and center when it comes to veterans’ health, veterans’ issues. As we look at this next election, our veterans have always, a lot of ways, have fallen behind the top line because we’re not necessarily in a war, but we have a lot that we need to be focused on. As you sit on the Committee for Veterans Affairs, what are the focus right now?
Certainly, I think some of the most important things are mental health, substance use disorder, suicide, the suicide rate, which has not decreased among our recent veterans transitioning off active-duty military, and especially younger veterans. They went through a horrific period where they were repetitively deployed, deployed into a war zone. For a lot of veterans in my district, and it’s still very emotional for me, is the amount of PTSD and mental health issues that occurred with the disaster withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Thirteen new Gold Star families who did not have to lose their children and veterans who, once again, after having gone through the horrific policy mistakes of Vietnam, where political figures were used for expertise and directed actions rather than our military, we did the same thing once again in withdrawing from Afghanistan. That’s been a tremendous hardship on our veterans, especially veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan war. I think we need to continue to focus on that.
The other thing we need to focus on is the VA itself and oversight of the VA. We are having a hearing in the VA, and we had to bring up a subpoena to try to get information from the VA one doing voter registration. Do we want the VA to do voter registration or do we want them to focus on caring for veterans?
I like Secretary McDonough, but one of the things where I continually butt heads with them is on increasing bureaucratic administrators rather than increasing the number of people who are there to deliver care for veterans, whether it’s the PACT Act, whether it’s mental health. Had we not had our oversight hearing, we would not have found out that the VA did not consider residential mental health care to be under the Mission Act. They didn’t have to get people in for residential mental health care and residential substance use disorder within 30 days.
People who are in a mental health crisis or when they’re ready for recovery, you can’t put them off 30 days and then call them on the 29th day and say, “It’ll be another 30 days before we let you in.” That’s unconscionable. The oversight function, I think, is a critically important that we’re doing now, and a critically important role of Congress, regardless of which party has the majority.
We have an entire generation of our veterans who did 9/11, a generation who have twenty-plus years of service at this point. A lot of them are now being injected into the VA healthcare system. Is the VA healthcare system ready to take that influx of folks? I come out from Special Operations. We hide a lot of our ailments until the day that you’re ready to go out, and then all of a sudden, there are some problems that nobody has ever dealt with.
I don’t think so. They are trying to increase the numbers of providers that they’re hiring. Remember, we also added the PACT Act. Toxic exposure. Any disorder is presumed to be related to your service, and that is also having a large influx of people into the VA health system. You have individuals who may be coming to the VA health system from 9/11. A lot of people enlisted and signed up after 9/11 in response to the needs of their country. They stepped up to the plate. I think it’s going to be challenging.
One of the things that don’t need to be focused on are things that are not relevant to giving better care for our veterans.
For me, hiring, as we saw with the VA, the numbers of bonuses that went to administrators at the VA, that’s money that could have gone to hiring more doctors or more nurse practitioners or getting their electronic health records finally in a place where we can actually use data and use it to facilitate care for veterans. I think that they’re trying, but I think one of the things they don’t need to be focused on are things that are not relevant to giving care to veterans.
The presidential race is taking front and center to so many, so much of the other races that are in the down ballot. What are you expecting out of the presidential debate, but then also the general election?
I hope that both candidates talk about policies and issues. I hope that both call into account for statements they have made in the past. I especially see that of Vice President Harris. I hope that people tune in. It’s a way for people to get to understand who it is that they’re voting for president. As far as down ballot races, I think every individual who’s running for office has to make the case to the people that they want to represent, that they want to serve. They’ve got to make that case to them.
Every individual who is running for office has to make the case to the people that they want to represent and serve.
That’s a lot of hard work, and you’ve got to do it by putting on your tennis shoes and going out and walking to people, walking out, talking to people, door knocking, being available. That’s one of the things that we in this office do very well, both with our veterans, our veteran advocacy groups. I was at a Veterans’ breakfast in one of my smaller counties. You just have to go out and meet with people. Irrespective of who’s at the top of the ticket, you have to make the case for yourself and why you’re the person that best represents them. I know when it comes to veterans, they don’t have a stronger advocate than they do with Mariannette Miller-Meeks.
You’ve got some work to do. We’ve got to get you back over there at the Capitol. Thank you so much for spending a couple of minutes with us.
Thank you.
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