NASHUA, NH – President Joe Biden On Tuesday, he launched a series of measures that will focus on members of the military, highlighting the bipartisan law he signed two years ago. help veterans those exposed to burn pits or other poisons are more easily cared for.
In his second trip to New Hampshire this election year, Biden celebrated a milestone for the PACT Act: Veterans Affairs approving the 1 millionth claim under the law. He cited data that proved the country was fulfilling its “sacred obligation” to care for America’s veterans.
“You are the steel backbone of our nation — and that’s not hyperbole,” Biden told a small audience that included veterans, their families and local officials.
“As you fulfill your duty to America,” he said, “we are finally beginning to fulfill our duty to you.”
While the legislation earned Biden broad praise from veterans in the audience, not all are ready to reward him with their votes in November.
“The PACT Act is probably one of the most impactful pieces of legislation to affect veterans in the last 75 years,” said Marine veteran Paul Lloyd. But when asked if he planned to vote for Biden to sign the legislation, Lloyd said he was “on the fence” and that caring for veterans is “a bipartisan issue.”
And for other veterans in the audience, Biden’s emotional connection to their experiences resonated, and the achievement deserves their support. Speaking about service members falling ill after being exposed to toxic fumes while in the military, Biden recounted how his son Beu died of brain cancer in 2015. He often attributes his cancer to his son’s deployment to Iraq.
“My son Beau was one of those veterans,” Biden said a week after the ninth anniversary of Beau’s death. “So it’s personal for me and my family and his family and his kids.”
Jeff Zamoida, a Gulf War veteran and independent voter, called the reference “extremely moving” and said he plans to endorse Biden in November.
“The president’s personal loss and this connection speaks to all of us who are next to the huge burning refineries and the stench,” Zamoida said.
According to the White House, 888,000 veterans have already received a total of $5.7 million in benefits under the PACT Act.
Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough said Tuesday that the law has helped the administration restore trust with veterans, some of whom are fed up with red tape in getting benefits.
“The PACT Act helped us [the] Instead of changing their lives to come to us, give the vets the VA, change the way we build trust with vets,” McDonough said.
Biden’s Republican rival, former President Donald Trump, has seen some of his support from the military community erode. In 2016, Trump won 60% of voters who said they had served in the military, according to NBC News exit polls; In 2020, this number dropped to 54%. According to data, in 2020, Biden won 44% of voters who said they served in the military.
Biden plans to continue to highlight veterans’ issues in the coming weeks with events at home and abroad.
On Monday, Beau Biden is scheduled to attend Memorial Day services at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, days before his family privately commemorates the ninth anniversary of his death.
A week later, Biden will travel to Normandy, France, to participate in ceremonies marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion. In France, Biden is expected to deliver a keynote speech about the heroism of Allied forces in World War II and the ongoing threats to democracy today.
His visit will be an opportunity for him to contrast the White House with a moment of Trump’s presidency. He canceled a visit to a World War I cemetery in France, – said Biden high-ranking official. according to This was reported by The Atlantic publicationTrump has called those buried there “suckers” and “losers,” which Biden has often angrily condemned.
Trump’s campaign said he called it “an old, tired lie to distract from the fact that Biden is the weakest commander-in-chief in history.”
“He’s not fit to be commander in chief for my son,” Biden said of Trump last month in Pittsburgh, a frequent critic of Trump for his alleged comments.
Biden plans to continue his strategy of wooing veterans by criticizing Trump in hopes of winning over voters like John Barrett, who attended Tuesday’s event, as well as highlighting his own record in office, such as the PACT Act.
Barrett, a Gulf War veteran, praised the PACT Act for expanding the number of medical conditions that are “finally recognized for people exposed to burn pits and herbicides,” in particular.
But he was not determined to vote for Biden.
“I’m one of those people who’s going to be a spectator for a while,” Barrett said. “As I get closer, I’ll be able to make better decisions and make better decisions at this point.”