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Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16), member of the influential House Appropriations Committee, released the following statement after she voted against the Fiscal Year 2026 Republican Military Construction and Veterans Affairs funding bill:

“Today, I voted against House Republicans’ 2026 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies funding bill that worsens the quality of life for servicemembers and their families at Fort Bliss, raises costs for Americans while benefitting big corporations by privatizing medical care for veterans – a component of Project 2025, and hurts military readiness.

“For 12 hours my Democratic colleagues and I submitted amendment after amendment to try and mitigate the damage of this bill - almost all were rejected by Republicans. We are left with a piece of legislation that enables VA workforce reductions, further limits access to abortion care for the women veterans in my state, and recklessly allows firearms to be accessed by those who pose a risk to themselves or others during their most vulnerable moments.

“Our troops and veterans are not a political football. I’m fighting alongside House Democrats to protect servicemembers, veterans, and their families so I cannot in good faith support this bill.”

In addition to the 12-hour debate, Congresswoman Escobar also spoke on the House Floor during the legislation’s debate. The video can be found here and a transcript can be found below:

“Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to first express my gratitude. I'm excited to be on the Appropriations Committee and to serve with wonderful colleagues on both sides of the aisle. 

“Mr. Chairman, I've been so alarmed by the attacks on hardworking Americans by the Trump administration. And we are seeing through the Republican reconciliation bill, an historic transfer of wealth from the have nots to the haves.

“And it's been equally alarming to see that our veterans have not been exempt from what we are all concerned about. In fact, if we look at the mass firings that occurred, as directed by Elon Musk and his DOGE effort, one third of our federal workforce is made up of veterans. They've been at risk by those firings. We know also that there are additional firings that are coming. 80,000 VA employees are slated to be fired. And the cuts to health care in the reconciliation bill will impact veterans’ families, which is why I was hoping we could mitigate much of that through this bill. And unfortunately, we have not. Which is why I cannot support the bill. 

“In fact, Project 2025, which we discussed at length last year, one of the tenants of it calls for privatizing the VA. This bill lays the foundation for that. And we know that our veterans demand, expect and deserve the best, highest quality health care. And that's why we must do more through this bill and not privatize. There are other components of the bill that are equally alarming. I hope we can continue to work better on both sides of the aisle to improve the care for our veterans. This bill doesn't get us there. 

“Thank you, I yield back.”