Lawmakers will keep passing reforms for the Veterans Administration, but what the agency needs, and what veterans deserve, is a "sweeping change of culture" at the VA, Rep. Joe Wilson said in Saturday's GOP address.

"Too often, in recent years, the stories we hear are ones of struggle," said the South Carolina Republican. "Many veterans have had a hard time making the transition. They struggle to find steady work. They drive miles to their VA clinic or hospital and fail to get quality care, or any kind of care whatsoever. The system is riddled with delays and mismanagement."

Veterans have died waiting for care, Wilson continued, and only one VA executive has been fired for manipulating wait lists, a situation Wilson called "tragic and unacceptable."

"The cost of war never leaves a veteran, and it’s our duty to properly honor their dedication," said Wilson, "not only because it’s the right thing to do. It shows young people who raise their hand to serve that we will always take care of them and their families."

Republicans are committed to modernizing veterans' services, including passing a series of reforms to deliver a "21st-century health care system for our veterans, and have acted to reform the VA itself, but that's not enough, said Wilson.

"It is fitting that at the end of a long campaign, we take time to honor our nation’s veterans," said Wilson, calling on Americans to thank veterans and their families for their service. "After all, their dedication affords us the blessings of self-government. A peaceful transition of power is one of our finest democratic traditions, and generation after generation, it is protected by brave men and women. Politicians come and go, but the service of our veterans is an unbroken chain."



