Every year on Memorial Day, Americans pause to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. We celebrate our brave men and women in uniform who have fought against oppression and tyranny around the world and here at home, and we preserve the memory of our fallen soldiers. We pay tribute to the innumerable sacrifices they have made to protect and preserve our freedoms, and they will always be remembered by a thankful nation.

Memorial Day is not only a day for us to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice; it is a day for us to resolve to honor the sacrifices of our servicemen and women now and in the future. As a nation, we owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to those who have fought for our freedoms. One of the ways we can do that is with a modernized G.I. bill coupled with improved benefits for our men and women in uniform.

Our great nation has a 60-year tradition of offering educational assistance to returning veterans. The G.I. Bill of the World War II era sparked a period of great economic growth and expansion for a whole generation of Americans. Nearly 8 million veterans who returned from the war used their benefits to go to college — including national figures such as former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist and former Senator Bob Dole, actors Clint Eastwood and Robert Duvall, novelists Mario Puzo and Frank McCourt, and world-renowned Captiva artist Robert Rauschenberg. And while every dollar we invested in the G.I. Bill after World War II produced seven more in economic growth, more importantly, we invested in those who invested their all for our nation.

That’s why I firmly believe that a modernized G.I. Bill holds the same sort of opportunities for today’s generation of returning soldiers and new veterans.

We need a new G.I. Bill that reflects the changing dynamic of our military and our nation. As our military has grown to rely on National Guardsmen and Reservists, so too should the benefits afforded to those who have served our country valiantly and made the same sacrifices as active-duty personnel.

To that end, I am proud to be a cosponsor of the bipartisan Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act (H.R. 5740). This legislation would increase educational benefits to all members of the military who have served on active duty since Sept. 11, 2001, including active reservists and members of the National Guard, after at least 36 months of active duty. The bill would strengthen the current Montgomery G.I. Bill, which is primarily designed for peacetime, and not wartime, service.

The bill would also index future education benefits to the actual cost of college tuition, which, as many parents and students know all too well, is increasing rapidly every year. Unfortunately, current veterans’ educational benefits haven’t kept up with the increases in costs of higher education. This bill will rectify that disparity.

The members of the armed forces and veterans across the country deserve the best America has to offer. A strong G.I. Bill will have a positive impact on military recruitment and give our brave servicemen and women the right to a bright future — one they have selflessly earned.

Many veterans in Southwest Florida were able to attend college and achieve their American dream because of the G.I. Bill. Today, we continue to honor the service and sacrifice of these men and women. Last week, the House of Representatives passed legislation to authorize an additional $66 million for construction of the new VA outpatient clinic in Cape Coral. It is a fitting tribute to those who have served our country in the past and those who do so today.

This Memorial Day, while we remember those who have gone before us, we must also honor those who are returning from battle now and in the future.

I hope you will join me in saluting the bravery and sacrifices of our nation’s soldiers and veterans, and especially the bravery of Southwest Florida’s veterans.

These heroes have made our freedom and security possible, and continue to do so around the world.



— U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, FL-14