John McCain
Town Hall
Stockton, CA 05/22/08
TRANSCRIPT:
REPORTER: Quickly, obviously you are aware today of what Sen. Obama said on the Senate floor in regard to the GI Bill. I wanted you to react to that, you put out a written statement today, making light of his lack of military experience. First of all, is that an issue in this campaign and how do you react to the statement on the floor? And second, what about your weekend plans, it's been called a Veepstakes, survivor, what are you up to this weekend?
JOHN MCCAIN: Thank you. First of all, I believe that I have earned the right to speak out on veterans' issues. As a matter of fact, I've received the highest ward from every veteran's organization in America. I don't know if the American people will judge Sen. Obama on whether or he has military experience or not. But I know they will judge him as to whether he has experience and knowledge to make the kind of judgment necessary to care for our veterans. Sen. Obama voted against funding the troops in combat in the field. Veterans care about that. And I care about it. I'm not willing to cut off the funding of our brave young Americans serving in uniform in combat. And finally, I also want to raise the benefits and help our veterans receive a quality education. But I also understand from my years in the military, the absolute vital importance of the NCO, which is the heart and soul of the American military. There is no one more respected in any military unit than the senior NCO. And we need to p-provide incentives for some of these outstanding Americans to not only remain in the military but after they've served for a period of time to be able to transfer those benefits to their family members. So, um, I worry about the educational side and am committed to raising the educational benefits. But I also understand the importance of retention and when Sen. Obama said, we can just recruit more, then he really doesn't understand how the military works and the importance of the NCO and the absolute vitality of these highest quality men and women who have decided to dedicate their entire careers to service to their country and the importance of keeping them and giving them the benefits necessary that would accrue as they remain in the military.
LABEL: JM CA 5-22 (EW#9) ABSU -- Clip H
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