More than two hundred veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from across the country converged on Capitol Hill Tuesday to join members of Congress in advocating immediate legislative action on Senator Webb's "Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act" (S.22/ H.R. 5740). The legislation boasts strong bi-partisan and bi-cameral support with 58 cosponsors in the Senate, 250 cosponsors in the House and the endorsements of the nation's leading veterans' organizations.

The "Post-9/11" GI Bill is designed to offer the brave men and women who have served honorably since September 11, 2001 a level of educational benefits on par with those provided to veterans of the World War II era. The legislation will give our returning troops the tools to succeed after military service, strengthen our economy in the face of increasing global competition, and make military service more attractive as we work to rebuild our military.

"This has been a great experience over the past 16 months, working with the various veterans' groups and my colleagues assembled today, making sure that this bill properly responds to the needs of our veterans," said Senator Webb. "This is not a difficult concept. For all who have been saying that this is the newest "Greatest Generation," this is the easiest way for us to prove that."

Webb continued: "It is time for those of us who have been calling on these service members to serve again and again to assist in providing them with the most tangible thanks that our country can offer--and that is a meaningful chance at a first-class future. We owe our veterans a future that is equal to the first-class service that they have given to our country. That is the motivation for that bill, and we need to get it passed in an expedited manner."

• To view a Fact Sheet on S.22, please click here
• To view the Senate co-sponsors, please click here
• To view the House co-sponsors, please click here
• To listen to NPR's segment today entitled "GI Bill Proposal Expands College Benefits for Vets," please click here
• To watch the PBS NewsHour story on the shortcomings of the current GI Bill (February 12, 2008), please click here
• New York Times Op-Ed: A Post-Iraq G.I. Bill by Senators Jim Webb and Chuck Hagel (November 9, 2007)
• Washington Post Editorial: Reward for Service, Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan deserve an improved GI bill (November 11, 2007)
• Prominent GI Bill Beneficiaries (Edward Humes, Over Here: How the GI Bill Transformed the American Dream)
• Chart on WWII Veterans in the Senate--How Much the GI Bill Would Cover Then & Now
• S. 22 Press Packet

Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - Senator Jim Webb issued the following statement on the first anniversary of the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech:

"A year ago today, a great tragedy shook the campus of Virginia Tech. I want to take a moment to commend the strength of the parents, spouses, family members and friends of those 32 students and faculty who were taken from us at that time. I would also like to express my continuing admiration for the Blacksburg community and the students of Virginia Tech, who have shown grace, humanity and resilience in the wake of such tragedy."

"This terrible tragedy underscores the need to ensure early access to counseling programs and the treatment of mental illness. It also calls attention to the need to review and correct federal guidelines so that school officials, administrators and law enforcement can work in tandem to effectively ensure the safety of our students while upholding their privacy."

"I have introduced legislation with Senator Warner to that effect, and it is my hope that it will soon pass the Congress."

"I join Governor Kaine in calling for a moment of silence at noon to honor the memory of those lost and the many lives they touched."

To hear audio of Senator Webb's Statement, please click here »

On Monday, April 1st, the Senate voted overwhelmingly to begin debate on a measure co-sponsored by Senator Webb designed to ease the impact of the home foreclosure crisis on communities across the country. The "Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008" (S. 2636), introduced last month to address the mounting nationwide housing crisis and help more families keep their homes, will receive a final vote later this week or next.

This legislation increases funding for loan counseling to homeowners facing foreclosure; expands refinancing opportunities; provides local governments with $4 billion in Community Development Block Grants to purchase and rehabilitate foreclosed properties; and grants tax relief to small businesses affected by the housing downturn. The bill also seeks to avoid foreclosures in the future by making the loan and refinancing process more transparent and consumer friendly.

"This is a responsible piece of legislation designed to help stem foreclosures and give federal resources directly to local governments to aid communities in recovering from this economic downturn,i said Senator Webb. iI am very pleased to see strong, bipartisan cooperation as we work to find a solution to reverse this trend."
To read more please click here »

For constituents facing home foreclosure, please contact the Homeowner HOPE hotline at: 1-888-995-HOPE (4673) or go to http://www.995hope.org/. The hotline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Washington, DC - Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) took to the Senate floor today to dispute President Bush's assertion that the recently approved Webb-McCaskill Commission on Wartime Contracting was beyond the constitutional authority of the Congress.

Stating that the Commission, signed into law last night by the President in the National Defense Authorization Act, will "march forward in an expeditious manner," Webb questioned why President Bush saw fit to issue a signing statement critical of a bipartisan body intended to make government more accountable to the American taxpayer.

In his signing statement, the President singled out four of 2,887 sections in the bill, including the section creating the Wartime Contracting Commission, claiming that they could inhibit the President's ability to execute his authority as commander in chief.

The Commission is modeled after the "Truman Committee" which investigated defense contracts during World War II and was credited with savings of $15 billion (1943 dollars) in taxpayer dollars. Similarly, the Webb-McCaskill measure is designed to address the systematic problems associated with the federal government's wartime-support, reconstruction, and private security contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Those of us in Congress have an obligation to the American taxpayer to be proper stewards of their tax dollars," said Webb. "I look forward to working with the Administration and my colleagues in Congress to ensure that the Commission comes to life as quickly as possible."

• To read Senator Webb's remarks from the Senate floor, please click here
  
• To listen to the audio from Senator Webb's floor speech, please click here
  
• To watch the video of Senator Webb's floor speech, please click here
  

• Summary of the amendment including the latest co-sponsors. (as of January 30, 2008).
  
• Letters of Endorsement from Project on Government Oversight, Taxpayers for Common Sense, OMBWatch, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the Government Accountability Project, Common Cause, and U.S. PIRG.
  
• Floor Statement of Senator Jim Webb on the Webb-McCaskill Amendment to Establish a Commission on Wartime Contracting
  
• Press Release on freshmen Senator's press conference introducing the Commission.
  

Washington, DC - Senator Webb issued the following statement in response to the President's State of the Union address:

"A year ago, I had the honor of delivering the response to the President's State of the Union address and covered a number of issues that are not only still relevant today, but unfortunately, have increased in terms of the threat to the long-term welfare of our country.

"In terms of foreign policy, over the last year the discussion with this administration have been based solely on military activities inside Iraq, rather than the political considerations in Iraq and the diplomatic considerations in the region, and the long-term dangers that have increased throughout the region over the last year, from Lebanon all the way over to Pakistan.

"We have seen the movement of much of al Qaeda out of Iraq, largely into Afghanistan and Pakistan. I was discussing this phenomenon before and during my recent trip to Iraq. Unfortunately, after that trip, we saw the assassination of Benazir Bhutto by al Qaeda.

"We need a vigorous approach with the strong leadership from the United States to focus on diplomatic solutions that can take advantage of the excellence that our military has brought to the specific situation inside Iraq - not simply the reiteration of what those military people have been doing..."

• To hear audio of the response, please click here.
• To read the entire response, please click here.

Washington, DC - Senator Jim Webb said today that the best way to spur job creation and economic growth is to prioritize investment in infrastructure projects. He urged the Senate Finance Committee to devote a large portion of the stimulus package to infrastructure development, "putting people to work and at the same time benefiting the nation's capital needs."

"I believe the strongest tonic for economic stimulation is investment in infrastructure projects, including construction for schools, highways, bridges, and water systems. Virginia has more than 5.5 billion in water infrastructure needs alone," said Webb. "Congress needs to act in a bipartisan manner to spur job creation and to protect hardworking Americans."

• To read the full press release, click here:
• To read the letter that Senator Webb sent to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus and Ranking Member Charles Grassley, click here:
• To listen to the Senator's radio remarks, click here:

Washington, DC - Senator Jim Webb called for increasing the size of the Navy's fleet beyond the current plan for 313 ships, as well as modernizing the surface Navy's legacy forces by employing more competition. "Competition harnesses the initiative and creativity of industry to improve combat capability." Senator Webb also advocated modernizing the Coast Guard. Senator Webb, a Naval Academy graduate, combat Marine in Vietnam and former Secretary of the Navy, voiced concern over how far the Navy's force structure has been reduced since his tenure in 1988.

• To read a copy of the press release, please click here
• To read Senator Jim Webb's remarks to the Surface Navy Association's 20th Annual National Symposium, please click here
• To read the Defense Daily story about the Senator's speech, please click here

Washington, DC - On Thursday, Senator Jim Webb will conduct a Joint Economic Committee (JEC) hearing to explore the steep increase in the U.S. prison population. The hearing entitled "Mass Incarceration in the United States: At What Cost?" will host a number of experts in the field to examine the reasons behind this growth in the prison population, whether it correlates with decreases in crime, the economic costs of maintaining the prison system, and the long-term labor market and social costs of mass incarceration. The hearing will explore whether the prison system responds to our needs for law and order while also treating fairly those who are in the system.

• Senator Webb's opening remarks.
• To view more information about today's hearing (including witness testimonies), please visit: http://www.jec.senate.gov
• Facts about the United States prison system.
• Floor Charts and Graphs.

Washington, DC - Senator Webb this week plans to reintroduce his amendment to support our nation's troops through responsible deployment cycles. The measure requires that active duty troops have at least the same time at home as the length of their previous tour of duty overseas. After four and a half years of occupation in Iraq, it is time for the availability of troops to dictate the operational tempo, and not the other way around. Politics aside, Senator Webb believes we need to be proper stewards of our men and women in uniform. His amendment seeks to do that.

• Copy of updated amendment (as of September 19, 2007).
  
• Fact Sheet on the amendment.
  
• Letter of endorsement from the Military Officers Association of America.
  
• Senator Webb stresses the importance of his bipartisan, pro-troop amendment on responsible rotation cycles (Video). (QuickTime Player Required)
  
• Troops need rest promised by Webb Editorial, The Virginian-Pilot.
  
• Radio actuality from Senator Webb regarding the importance of his amendment and the need for Congress to commit to responsible troop rotation cycles-not just talk about them.
  
• Floor Remarks of Senator Jim Webb on Bipartisan, Pro-Troop Amendment.


• September 20th: Post-Vote Statement of Senator Jim Webb Regarding his Dwell-Time Amendment
  
• July 9th: Press release on Senator Webb's amendment to support the troops through responsible deployment cycles.
  
• July 9th: Senator Webb's remarks on his amendment to the Defense Authorization Act.