Serving Our Veterans

I will strengthen services for those who have put their lives on the line for this country.

My top priority while serving in Congress was delivering for Texas veterans. Serving on both the Veterans Affairs and Armed Services committees in the U.S. House of Representatives, I worked with Republicans and Democrats alike to lift up the heroes who have put their lives on the line for our country.

My VA health care reform plan added two new VA clinics in my hometown of El Paso, nearly doubled the number of mental health providers at the local VA, and ultimately brought wait times down from an average of 71 days to an average of 5 days.

In addition, I authored and passed legislation that expanded access to VA mental health care to veterans with other-than-honorable discharges, granted every separating service member access to a mental health screening, improved and customized transition assistance for service members leaving the military—and more.

Texas can and must do more to serve our veterans.

Texas can and must do more to serve our veterans. As governor, I will prioritize efforts to end veteran homelessness in Texas by the end of my first year in office, cut property taxes for disabled and low-income veterans, dramatically expand the state’s veterans health care case management system, strengthen services for veterans suffering from toxic exposure, expand access to medical marijuana and other alternatives to harmful opioids, and strengthen access to the education and employment benefits that our veterans have earned.