|
One
year
ago
yesterday,
19
courageous
wildland
firefighters
gave
their
lives
battling
the
Yarnell
Hill
Fire
in
Yavapai
County,
Arizona.
It
was
a
staggering
loss
that
still
pains
our
state
and
nation.
The
Yarnell
tragedy
is
a
grim
reminder
of
the
grave
risks
our
firefighters
take
every
day
to
protect
our
lives
and
property
in
Arizona
and
across
the
nation.
I
hope
you
will
keep
in
your
thoughts
and
prayers
the
Granite
Mountain
Hotshots
and
their
families
and
loved
ones
who
miss
them
so
dearly.
They
are
American
heroes
that
Arizona
can
call
her
own,
and
their
sacrifice
will
never
be
forgotten.
--
John
McCain
Veterans
Affairs
Controversy
Two
months
after
reports
first
emerged
of
chronic
mismanagement
and
secret
wait-lists
that
could
have
caused
the
deaths
of
up
to
40
veterans
at
the
Phoenix
VA
Health
Care
System,
the
Senate voted
overwhelmingly
in
favor
of
sweeping
Veterans
Affairs
reform
legislation.
I
have
worked
hard
with
the
Chairman
of
the
Veterans
Affairs
Committee
Bernie
Sanders
to
craft
and
pass
the Veterans
Access
to
Care
through
Choice,
Accountability
and
Transparency
Act.
This
bill
is
a
beginning
–
not
an
end
–
to
addressing
this
crisis.
Still,
the
bill
includes
some
of
the
most
significant
changes
to
the
VA
in
decades.
For
example,
for
the
first
time
in
history,
veterans
would
receive
a
Choice
Card.
If
a
veteran
can’t
make
an
appointment
in
a
reasonable
time
frame
or
lives
far
from
a
VA
medical
facility,
they
would
be
able
to
go
to
the
doctor
of
their
choice
to
get
the
care
they
deserve.
I
have
long
advocated
for
our
veterans
to
have
the
flexibility
to
choose
where
and
when
they
receive
the
care
they
have
earned,
and
this
bill
moves
us
in
that
direction.
This
legislation
also
brings
badly-needed
accountability
to
VA
operations.
It
includes
provisions
that
would
empower
VA
administrators
to
immediately
fire
poor-performing
employees
with
no
pay
during
the
appeals
process.
The
recent
VA
audits
have
found
that
performance
data
was
falsified
widely
throughout
the
VA
to
allow
employees
to
fraudulently
secure
bonuses.
Such
problems
point
to
systemic
and
cultural
problems
that
must
be
dealt
with
head-on,
by
holding
culpable
individuals
responsible.
These
are
among
the
provisions
I
will
fight
to
keep
intact
as
I
serve
as
one
of
14
Senate
conferees
who
will
meet
with
the
conferees
from
the
House
of
Representatives
this
month
to
reach
a
compromise
on
the
final
version
of
the
bill.
It
is
my
hope
that
we
will
reconcile
the
differences
in
the
two
pieces
of
legislation
soon
so
that
our
veterans
can
receive
the
care
they
deserve
when
they
need
it.
Unaccompanied
Minors
Crossing
the
U.S.-Mexico
Border
Arizona
is
in
the
middle
of
another
national
controversy
in
June
with
the
transfer
of
thousands
of
unaccompanied
minors
to
the
Nogales
Processing
Center
that
were
apprehended
attempting
to
cross
the
border
in
Texas.
Children,
primarily
from
the
Central
American
countries
of
Honduras,
Guatemala
and
El
Salvador,
are
continuing
to
be
moved
to
Nogales
for
processing
before
being
transferred
to
Health
and
Human
Service
(HHS)
locations
throughout
the
country,
as
required
by
U.S.
law.
Misinformation
being
promoted
by
human
smugglers
–
or
coyotes
–
has
persuaded
parents
to
send
their
children
thousands
of
miles,
often
times
alone,
to
exploit
a
perceived
loophole
in
our
immigration
system
–
and
has
created
the
humanitarian
crisis
we
face
today.
Too
often,
these
children
are
subject
to
abuse
and
exploitation
by
these
coyotes
in
their
attempt
to
cross
into
the
United
States.
To
help
stop
the
flow
of
illegal
border
crossings
and
punish
the
criminal
elements
assisting
these
migrants,
Senator
Flake
and
I
introduced
legislation
to
increase
penalties
for
human
smugglers,
including
a
prison
sentence
of
up
to
20
years
for
those
that
attempt
to
smuggle
unaccompanied
minors.
This
crisis
is
the
latest
symptom
of
a
broken
immigration
system
in
this
country
–
broader
action
is
needed.
Under
our
comprehensive
immigration
reform
bill
that
passed
the
Senate
last
year,
these
individuals
being
apprehended
by
the
Border
Patrol
would
not
be
eligible
to
remain
in
this
country
and
would
not
qualify
for
legal
status
or
a
chance
to
earn
citizenship.
In
addition,
that
legislation
would
have
provided
$4.5
billion
for
technology
for
cameras,
sensors,
drones,
and
towers
as
recommended
by
the
Border
Patrol;
20,000
additional
Border
Patrol
agents;
350
miles
of
additional
fencing;
and
triple
the
funding
for
Operation
Streamline
for
mandatory
prosecutions
of
illegal
border
crossers.
In
Case
You
Missed
It
In
June - After
receiving
reports
that
media
organizations
were
being
denied
access
to
the
Nogales
Processing
Center
to
observe
and
document
the
conditions
in
these
facilities
for
the
large
number
of
unaccompanied
children
being
held
there,
Senator
Flake
and
I urged
Customs
and
Border
Patrol
(CBP)
to
allow
media
access
to
the
center.
A
few
days
later,
the
CBP reversed
its
policy.
- The
Arizona
Game
and
Fish
Commission
gave
its
unanimous
support
for
my two
amendments
that
enhance
vital
hunting
and
fishing
opportunities
in
Arizona
and
the
thousands
of
jobs
they
support.
- I
sent
a
letter
to
Pima
Community
College
(PCC)
Chancellor
Lee
Lambert
urging
him
to
follow
through
on
his
commitment
to
rectify
the
mishandling
of
veterans’
educational
benefits
by
PCC.
My
office
has
been working
with
the
chancellor
to
solve
these
issues.
- Senator
Flake
and
the
Nevada
senators
joined
me
in introducing
an
amendment
to
the
2015
Commerce,
Justice,
Science
and
Related
Agencies
Appropriations
Act
that
highlights
the
substantial
economic
impact
that
the
proposed
Interstate
11
–
which
would
connect
Phoenix
and
Las
Vegas
–
would
have
on
Arizona
and
other
Western
states.
- Arizona
State
University
and
Starbucks
teamed
up
to
make
it possible
for
thousands
of
part-
and
full-time
U.S.
Starbucks
partners
to
complete
a
bachelor’s
degree
at
ASU
with
full
tuition
reimbursement.
- Senator
Flake
and
I
requested
that
Robert
Griffin,
acting
Inspector
General
of
the
U.S.
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA),
provide
a
review
of
VA
managers’
reported
retaliation
against
whistleblowers.
 - Senator
Flake
and
I
applauded
the
FBI
opening
an
investigation
of
practices
at
the
Phoenix
VA
Health
Care
System.
- A
nationwide
audit
of
the
VA
found
that
over
57,000
veterans
are
waiting
90
days
or
more
for
their
first
doctor’s appointment
at
the
VA.
- I requested
a
status
report
on
U.S.
Marine
Corps
veteran,
Andrew
Tahmooressi,
who
was
arrested
on
March
31,
2014,
and
remains
in
a
prison
in
Mexico
awaiting
trial.
- I
enjoyed
meeting
with
the
Arizona
Republican
Party
Executive
Committee
and
District
Chairs.
Event
Spotlight:
Nogales
Processing
Center
Facility
Visit
A
couple
of
weeks
ago,
I
visited
the
U.S.
Customs
and
Border
Protection
(CBP)
processing
center
in
Nogales.
It
was
important
for
me
to
see
the
conditions
in
which
these
children
are
being
held
first
hand.
CBP
officials
gave
me
an
extensive
tour
of
the
facility
and
I
spoke
with
them
about
the
challenges
they
are
facing
from
the
rapidly-growing
number
of
unaccompanied
minors
crossing
our
borders.
I
was
pleased
to
find
the
conditions
for
the
children
adequate
–
they
have
food,
clothing,
shower
access
and
televisions
on
which
to
watch
the
World
Cup.
President
Obama
has
called
on
Congress
to
provide
his
administration
authority
to
return
children
to
their
native
countries
faster,
increase
border
security
resources,
provide
a
significant
increase
in
immigration
judges
to
clear
court
backlogs,
increase
penalties
for
those
that
smuggle
migrants,
and
increased
resources
to
detain,
process,
and
house
migrants
who
cross
illegally
before
being
returned
home.
I
welcome
the
President’s
request
and
look
forward
to
working
with
my
colleagues
to
accomplish
this
as
quickly
as
possible. |