February 22, 2018 – Respect for Veterans

Respect for Veterans

“Why are we still fighting against certain veterans groups in court? Because they are asking for more than the federal government can afford.” – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

This was the response that the Prime Minister gave to an audience at a town hall in Edmonton in early February. Canadians were shocked to hear these words, especially our brave men and women who have served our country proudly for many years. More shocking was that the response was to a question posed by a veteran who had lost a limb in Afghanistan.

If the government does not have the means to support our veterans, how do they explain paying $10 million to a convicted terrorist? Veterans went to battle for our country, proudly wearing their uniform and they simply ask for better support from the government. During the last election campaign, the Prime Minister promised that he would not fight veterans in court, yet he continues to do so. Again, this comes as no surprise to Canadians as this Prime Minister and this government is known to say one thing and do another.

Under the Prime Minister’s watch, the number of veterans waiting for disability benefits has ballooned to more than 29,000 and disabled veterans are losing their case managers due to Liberal policy changes. Is this also a case of veterans asking for more than the government can afford? The Prime Minister needs to unequivocally apologize for his insensitive comments.

I believe that military veterans deserve the utmost respect for their service to our country and the sacrifices that many have made in that endeavour. Elected officials need to lead by example and demonstrate this respect to veterans. The veteran who asked the question in Edmonton stated that he was prepared to give his life in battle but he never could have imagined that his next big battle would be with his own government. This exchange shows that the Liberals cannot be trusted to address the issues affecting veterans, nor do they intend to honour the promises they made to our veterans during the last election campaign.

To make the Prime Minister understand the seriousness of this issue, our Conservative team put forward a motion in the House of Commons, calling on the Prime Minister to apologize for his insensitive comments. I know that I will be voting in favour of this motion and I hope that the Prime Minister will do the right thing and apologize.

Let me know if you agree that the Prime Minister should apologize to veterans for his insensitive comments: http://www.blakerichards.ca/petition/.