00:00Now I want to bring up an amazing member of Congress from the state of Oregon, a medical doctor herself, Dr. Congresswoman Maxine Dexter.
00:13Thank you so much. Good afternoon. I very much appreciate this opportunity.
00:18I am Congresswoman Maxine Dexter, a physician, a mother, and very proud to represent Oregon's 3rd District.
00:25I completed, as many doctors did, much of my medical training at a VA facility.
00:32Every day, walking past the sign that said, the price of freedom is visible here.
00:38Those words are not abstract. They were reflected in the veterans I cared for.
00:43Men, women, living with visible and invisible scars.
00:50Lifelong health challenges oftentimes were incurred from the service that they gave.
00:55When they stepped forward, when their country called.
00:59Our promise to them is simple. If you serve, we will take care of you.
01:04Not some of you. Not when it's convenient. Not when it's politically approved.
01:11All of you.
01:12For Donald Trump to reinstate a complete ban on abortion care and counseling at the VA,
01:18even in cases of rape and incest, is nothing short of a betrayal of that sacred promise.
01:26It strips women veterans of the very freedoms they fought to defend.
01:30That is why I led more than 130 House Democrats urging this administration to protect abortion access for our veterans.
01:39It's why every single day on the House Veterans Affairs Committee, I will not rest until every veteran receives the full spectrum of care that they have earned and deserve.
01:48And it's why I partnered with Congresswoman Julia Brown Lee to introduce legislation to make this protection ironclad to guarantee in law that veterans and their eligible dependents have the right to access abortion care, medication and counseling through the VA.
02:06And I stand here today as a proud member of the Democratic Women's Caucus to say unequivocally, we will fight every single day for women veterans access to abortion care at the at the Democratic Women's Caucus.
02:27We know a simple truth. Freedom means little if you have no bodily autonomy.
02:32If we can't control our futures, our health, what does that mean?
02:37That's why our caucus is united in this fight.
02:40We will not stop until every service woman and every veteran can access the reproductive care that they need to thrive.
02:47That means safe, affordable abortion care, fertility services to grow their families, comprehensive birth control and reproductive health education,
02:56and the ability to receive that care wherever and whenever they need it.
03:01Because when we honor women veterans with the full spectrum of health care, we honor their service.
03:07When we respect their choices, we respect their sacrifice.
03:11And when we defend their freedom, we defend the very freedom that they put their lives on the line to protect.
03:18Thank you very much.
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