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PACT ACT OF 2022
Mr. TESTER. Madam President, 86 to 11. 86 to 11. We have been fighting for this for decades--for decades. And I will tell you that the last few days have not been particularly easy for me, and they have been even more difficult for the veterans around this Nation who thought they had a benefit on June 16 and then found out that it wasn't there.
But today, the Senate took the historic step of delivering healthcare and benefits to all eras of veterans by the passage of the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act, otherwise known as the PACT Act.
For hundreds of thousands of veterans of all generations, for our all-volunteer military, this bill puts us on a path to finally paying the cost of war.
Look, I take my cues from the veterans as chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. When I first introduced this bill last year, we set out with a clear goal to right the wrongs of decades of inaction and failure by us--the U.S. Government--to provide all eras of toxic-exposed veterans the VA care and benefits that they have earned.
We knew the only way to do this was to put forth a comprehensive package that took care of our past, present, and future veterans. I am grateful--and I mean this--this wouldn't have happened without my good friends Ranking Member Jerry Moran, John Boozman, and Martin Heinrich. We all worked together to make sure that this toxic exposure package came together so we could have the vote we had today, with help from both sides of the aisle.
I am thankful for the leadership of President Joe Biden who addressed this issue in his State of the Union speech and got the ball rolling; to the VA Secretary, Denis McDonough, for his leadership as Secretary of the VA, and the House Veterans Affairs Committee chairman, Mark Takano, and so many others that I can't even list them all, so I am not going to start down this line.
This bill is legislation we envisioned when we set out to right wrongs of our toxic-exposed veterans. The PACT Act recognizes that responsibility, and it recognizes the cost of war.
Veterans service organizations across this country and the veterans they represent and the advocates have understood this for a long time. That is why not only have they been incredible partners in this, but that is why this has been the No. 1 issue for veterans service organizations in this country--the No. 1 issue.
And, in fact, so important to them and the folks that pretty much left here--the Chamber--but it is so important to them that they were willing to sleep on the steps of the Capitol for the last 5 days. Now, you might not think that is a big deal, but it isn't exactly nice in Washington, DC, the 1st of August or the end of July.
And last night, we had one heck of a thunderstorm, rolled me right out of bed. Those folks were out there. They were making their names be heard. They were making the policies be heard that they fought for.
And I am just going to say one more thing: If you take a look at our military, the finest in the world, there is a reason for that. There is a reason for that. And that reason is these folks are willing to get the job done, and they did. And that is why we got a vote of 86 to 11.
That is why folks said: Enough is enough. We are not doing any more games; we are going to vote on this bill. That is what the folks sent us here to Washington, DC, to do, and we did it.
And I couldn't be prouder of the U.S. Senate, but I am also more proud of the folks who served this country in the military and their families. I got on this floor earlier today and said: The longer we delay, the longer we are going to deny healthcare for our veterans and veterans are going to continue to be in crisis and they are going to continue to die. Now, we have passed the bill that rights that wrong, that is going to help these veterans across the board. And I think we are going to see improvement in all sorts of things--not only the diseases caused by toxic exposure, but the mental health that is also associated with service to this country.
We put politics aside. We delivered results through action, through real action. And we said thank you to the men and women who have served in our military. Thank you for what you have done for this country. Thank you for protecting our freedoms. Thank you for keeping us safe.
And most importantly, we told them you held up your end of the bargain; we held up ours.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. SANDERS. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 168, No. 129
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