Veterans - Obama Presidency Oral History

At a town hall meeting with U.S. armed forces veterans in San Antonio, Texas during the 2008 campaign, while speaking of the Veterans Homelessness Prevention Act he had recently introduced in the U.S. Senate, Obama told the servicemembers: “This is not a partisan issue. This is a moral obligation. When I am President, we will not leave any of our veterans behind.” As President, Obama, along with First Lady Michelle Obama, launched a number of initiatives to improve the livelihoods of, and government services for, men and women who served in the military. The Obama Presidency Oral History project contains extensive coverage of these policies and initiatives, as well as the broader set of issues affecting the health of the U.S. military during a period in which the United States was engaged in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and other military operations abroad.

Narrators discuss a series of improvements to existing services and new measures designed to assist veterans in acclimating to civilian life. Under the Obama Administration, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) received the largest budget in its history, which was used to extend services, enable better access to mental health care for veterans, and reduce existing backlogs in VA service claims. Narrators also discuss the 2015 passage of the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, meant to address high rates of suicide among U.S. servicemembers and veterans; efforts to reduce veteran homelessness through the End Veteran Homelessness program; and government support for advancing scientific research on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). Many narrators speak about Joining Forces, a comprehensive White House program launched by Michelle Obama and Second Lady Jill Biden in 2011 to highlight and support veterans and their families in the areas of employment, education, and wellness resources through public-private partnerships.

A number of narrators also address the Administration’s response to scandals and crises which highlighted ongoing challenges for servicemembers and veterans. These include the attention to high rates of sexual assault in the military after a May 2014 report showed a fifty percent increase in reports of such crimes over the prior year. In interviews, survivors of sexual assault and representatives of veterans’ organizations, as well as White House, VA, and Defense Department policymakers, discuss efforts to address the sexual assault crisis. Narrators also discuss the Administration’s response to a 2014 Veterans Health Administration whistleblower complaint which revealed lengthy wait times for  VHA services which had in some cases led to deaths, and which led to the resignation of VA secretary Eric Shinseki.

Material related to veterans’ issues in the collection overlaps significantly with material in the Wartime Presidency topic essay, as well as the Counterterrorism and East Wing topic essays.