We recently heard about the upcoming “Unite 4 Veterans” Rally on Friday, June 6 in Washington D.C., where vets from around the country will make their voices heard in the loudest way possible … with the legendary Irish punk band The Dropkick Murphys.
We spoke with Unite4Vets coalition members Army veterans Will Attig and Chris Purdy.
Together, they sounded the alarm about recent VA staff cuts without regard to the second-order effects on programs that veterans rely on every day.
In a recent statement, the group said, “The Unite 4 Veterans Coalition stands in firm opposition to recent actions and proposals from the White House that amount to political theater at the direct expense of our nation’s veterans … The administration’s proposal to eliminate more than 80,000 positions from the VA and terminate thousands of jobs held by veterans and their families in the federal workforce is a betrayal.
"Veterans make up more than a third of the federal workforce. Cutting their positions while simultaneously gutting the VA staff that manages transition programs like the G.I. Bill and VA vocational rehabilitation is not about efficiency, it’s about neglect.
"This administration’s priorities could not be clearer: spend over $50 million on a military parade while slashing programs like the Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program—a proven resource that kept over 17,000 vulnerable veteran families housed.
"This is not sound policy; it is political optics at the expense of those who’ve sacrificed the most.”
We also discuss the combat connection veterans have to Boston’s legendary punk band The Dropkick Murphys and how they have always been huge supporters of first responders, veterans and America’s often ignored working class.
Get more on “Unite 4 Veterans” Rally on The National Mall in D.C. here.
Read: Unite 4 Veterans Coalition Statement, “Stop Dishonoring Veterans with Broken Promises and Empty Gestures” here.
Contact Phil Briggs, the host of CBS Eye on Veterans at phil@connectingvets.com.