"Supreme Court hears an Army reservist’s case involving exposure to burn pits in Iraq" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
Excerpt
SUMMARY: The Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case that questions whether sweeping legal immunity for states trumps guarantees for America’s veterans. John Yang introduces us to a Texan who served his country, and now finds himself in a legal battle for his old job.
SUMMARY: Across the country, Americans paid tribute on Monday to members of the U.S. Armed Forces, who put their own comfort and wellbeing at risk to defend their country. Here are a selection of the commemorations and observances.
SUMMARY: On average, 20 U.S. military veterans daily die by suicide, and suicides among active duty personnel are increasing. A number of treatments for veterans with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder exist, but they have drawbacks. Special correspondent Mike Cerre looks at treatment options and follows up on U.S. Marines with whom he was embedded during the war in Iraq.
SUMMARY: The Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from veterans who had sued defense contractors over claims that toxic smoke from open burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan caused them serious health problems. One of the contractors, KBR, countered that waste elimination procedures were directed by the military itself. As Hari Sreenivasan reports, the afflicted soldiers have no remaining legal recourse.
SUMMARY: Among the more than 2.5 million men and women who have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, there are many veterans -- exposed to sandstorms, burn pits and other hazards -- who suffer from a mysterious pulmonary illness, as well as the confusion and doubt that surrounds their condition. The NewsHour's Dan Sagalyn reports, with narration from Nick Schifrin.
SUMMARY: Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week’s news, including the Trump administration’s move to impose tariffs on U.S. allies, the President’s move to pardon conservative pundit Dinesh D'Souza, reactions to Roseanne Barr’s racist tweet and Samantha Bee’s vulgar insult, plus veterans are running for Congress in record numbers.
Judy Woodruff (NewsHour): And that bring us to the analysis of Shields and Brooks. That’s syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks.
Welcome to both of you.
So, Mark, do we believe that being a veteran this year is going to help these candidates?
Mark Shields, syndicated columnist: I think it will, Judy. And I will tell you why, why I think that.
And I thought Lisa’s piece captured it, but particularly with Mr. Avery there.
We now are in an era, irrespective of how you feel about parties, of the era of self politically, the era of me. And it’s — I was thinking how out of sync this era is with John McCain. John McCain’s message in 2000, 2008 was to serve a cause greater than yourself and my cause and my country, which I have served imperfectly.
Well, I think voters crave people who do have a sense of service, whether military service, certainly, but the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, that they have had a cause greater than themselves.
And I think we’re yearning for that in the country and I — it’s missing in our national leadership. It’s missing in the White House. And I think it’s prized by voters. I truly do.
Judy Woodruff: How do you see this?
David Brooks, New York Times: Yes.
Well, it’s always the case that voters want to know how a person’s character is formed before politics. And so strong candidates have military, maybe a business background, a faith background, something that will say, this is who made me who I am. It’s not just being a politician.
So, that’s perennial. I think this year in particular the veterans are surging, in part — I have met a bunch of them through a group called With Honor. And what strikes me is, when you meet them, is they bring that can-do attitude that they all learned in Iraq and Afghanistan or elsewhere, and they bring that to office.
I would say party identification is a smaller part of their personal identity than other people. They are running as Republicans and Democrats, but that’s not quite the same team they grew up in, which is not the case for a lot of people who have spent their lives working as staffers, and then moving up ranks.
And so they want to come to Congress and be less partisan. Whether that can actually happen is another question. Once you get here, you know, the fund-raising takes a ton of time. The party — the team spirit takes a lot out of you.
So we will see if they can actually do it. But it’s — they’re certainly all amazingly impressive people that you meet through this.
The final I will say is, so far, their win/loss record is not perfect. A bunch of them are losing too, which is what you would expect. So it’s not a lock-in, as we heard from Lisa’s piece.
Mark Shields: I will say the Democratic nominee in that race that Lisa just reported on in the 11th will almost surely be Mikie Sherrill, the former helicopter pilot.
And Amy McGrath, of course, did win Kentucky last week, a colonel, Marine Corps jet fighter pilot. And I think do think, Judy, that the reason that veterans are sort of prized is that at a time of universal draft, when four out of five senators that served, now we’re down to 7 percent of Americans who have ever worn the uniform, and just very few in the Congress.
Judy Woodruff: Well, we’re going to continue to watch and see how they do as the year goes on.
SUMMARY: Military veterans are running for Congress this year in record numbers, many for the first time. In New Jersey's 11th district, no fewer than four veterans, two in each party, are running for the open congressional seat. Lisa Desjardins reports from the competitive district and explains what's behind this new national trend.
SUMMARY: For the 3 million women who have served in the U.S. military, there's a growing effort to highlight and register their place in history. Going back to the American Revolution, they have held a variety of roles, and are now the fastest-growing group of veterans. Judy Woodruff reports on the Women in Military Service for America Memorial's work to gather and commemorate their names, photos and stories.
SUMMARY: If you’re watching this today, perhaps you’re taking a break from a family barbeque, or maybe you’ve just returned from shopping for some much needed item that this weekend’s sales have allowed you to purchase. I hope the extra time with your loved ones is rewarding, and the long weekend a satisfying break from the challenges of work, or school, or parenting. I’ll be hoping for the same for myself and my loved ones.
I still believed that we might all make it home together. But that’s not how war goes.
But I humbly ask you to consider the following. Fourteen years ago, I spent Memorial Day looking for I.E.D.s in AND around the city of Mosul, Iraq. I had only been in country for a couple of months, and the brave men and women of the 101st Airborne Division had worked and fought and bled throughout the previous year to clear the way for what we all hoped would be a relatively peaceful transfer of power.
My unit had not yet suffered its first casualty, and as summer began the purple fingers of Iraqi citizens casting their votes felt like a cause worth facing that danger for. But soon enough, something shifted. Attacks increased in both intensity and frequency over the summer, and by the time autumn came around several members of my company had been wounded, some seriously, and some terrifyingly so, especially when you knew you had to go back outside the wire again the next day. I’ll admit, I was scared pretty much all of the time, but I did my job to the best of my ability, and I still believed that we might all make it home together.
But that’s not how war goes. Close to Christmas, as 2004 was coming to a close, our unit lost two young men, Sergeants Nicholas Mason and David Ruhren. They were both 20 years old. I grieved for them and their families then, and I grieve for them today. And I would ask you to consider the fact that on so many of the days between that one and this one, there have been others to grieve for. Less than a month ago, a young man from Colorado was killed in Afghanistan. When I came home from Iraq in 2005, he was 9 years old.
So today, I’d ask you to take a moment to ask yourself, “How many more names might be added to the long list of those we are asked to remember next year?” And to also remember the thousands of veterans, actively serving men and women, and grieving families of their fallen brothers and sisters, for whom Memorial Day doesn’t just fall on the last Monday in May, but on every single day of the rest of their lives.
SUMMARY: In our NewsHour Shares moment of the day, a temporary memorial, now on the National Mall, honors the hundreds of thousands of U.S. military members who lost their lives since the turn of the 20th century with 645,000 poppies.
SUMMARY: In "The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels," Jon Meacham tries to offer historical context and a sense of proportion for our current times. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author is best known for his Presidential biographies of Andrew Jackson, Thomas Jefferson, and George H.W. Bush. Meacham joins Judy Woodruff for a conversation.
