Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–May 1, 2014. Presenters: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel; Major General Jeffrey Snow, director, Department of Defense Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office; Nate Galbreath, senior executive advisor, Department of Defense Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: Good afternoon. Happy May Day. Last week,[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–May 1, 2014.  On Wednesday, the House sadly voted 222-195 to deny veterans the opportunity to discuss medical marijuana with physicians at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), even in the 21 states and the District of Columbia where medical marijuana is legal. But, there was a silver lining.[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–May 1, 2014.  Yesterday, Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth (IL-08) voted for H.R. 4486 – the 2015 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act – which passed the House of Representatives. The bill would provide $158.2 billion in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs, 7% more than in fiscal year 2014.[Read More…]

Washington, DC—(ENEWSPF)—April 30, 2014. The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Pfc. Christian J. Chandler, 20, of Trenton, Texas, died April 28 in Baraki Barak District, Logar province, Afghanistan, when enemy forces attacked his unit with small arms fire. He[Read More…]

Chicago–(ENEWSPF)–April 30, 2014.  As the Illinois General Assembly remains in session in Springfield until May 31, the Illinois Department of Veterans seeks to highlight the impact of pending FY2015 budget decisions. In his annual budget address on March 26, 2014, Governor Quinn proposed a 5-year budget plan which maintains veteran[Read More…]

Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–April 30, 2014 – 11:33 A.M. EDT DR. BIDEN:  (Applause.)  Thank you, Chrissandra.  Wow, you are quite impressive, isn’t she?  (Applause.)  Thank you for your service, and keep up the good work in school.  And I love the fact that you love your teachers.  (Laughter.) Chrissandra’s story is a[Read More…]

Washington, DC—(ENEWSPF)—April 29, 2014. REAR ADMIRAL JOHN KIRBY: Afternoon, everybody. Since Russia began its intervention in Crimea and its aggressive actions along the border with Ukraine, Secretary Hagel has stepped up his engagements and consultation with the European counterparts. This morning, Secretary Hagel had a very productive meeting with the[Read More…]

Manila, The Philippines–(ENEWSPF)–April 28, 2014 – 9:56 A.M. PHT PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Hello, everybody!  Please, have a seat.  Kumusta kayo.  It is great to be here at Fort Bonifacio.  Vice President Binay, distinguished guests:  It’s an honor to be here with our outstanding allies — the leaders and members of the[Read More…]

Seoul, Republic of Korea–(ENEWSPF)–April 26, 2014 – 10:57 A.M. KST PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, hello, Yongsan!  (Applause.)  It is good to be back to Yongsan Garrison.  I want to thank one of our military’s most tested and trusted leaders for that outstanding introduction — General Mike Scaparrotti.  (Applause.)  Now, I’ve been[Read More…]

Washington, DC—(ENEWSPF)—April 25, 2014. Today, the Department of Defense (DoD) released its 2012 calendar year DoD Suicide Event Report (DoDSER), which details the number of suicide attempts and deaths for U.S. service members. “The department takes suicide prevention very seriously and considers any measure that saves a life as one[Read More…]