My father was a veteran who found a good job after putting himself through college on the GI Bill.
When the bottom fell out and he became unemployed at the age of 55, my entire family pitched in -- my mom took work sewing, and I got a minimum wage job after school -- but we still needed help to get by.
I saw firsthand how hard it can be to find work again, and that's part of the reason I feel so strongly about the current debate over extending unemployment insurance.
Right now, nearly 21,000 veterans have been without unemployment benefits since Congress failed to extend them in December -- and three thousand more join their ranks each month we fail to act.
Please join me and sign VoteVets' petition urging Congress to extend unemployment benefits for all job seeking Americans who count on this vital safety net.
It's not just veterans falling through the cracks due to congressional inaction. It's 1.6 million Americans waiting for a lifeline, many of them with a spouse or children who need that support to make ends meet.
They aren't lazy or looking for a check so they can sit at home and do nothing. Our country is just coming out of a great recession and there are three unemployed Americans for every job opening right now.
The Senate is set to vote on this issue soon, and hopefully the House will immediately follow suit. These families can't wait.
http://action.votevets.org/unemployment
Thank you for adding your name to mine on this important issue.
Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth
Iraq War Veteran
@TammyDuckworth
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