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Military.com
Dr. David Shulkin was sworn in as secretary of the Veterans Affairs Department and immediately was urged to begin approving thousands of exemptions to President Donald J. Trump's federal hiring freeze.
At Shulkin's swearing-in, Vice President Mike Pence said, "Few duties of government are as important as fulfilling what President [Abraham] Lincoln promised, which is that we as a nation shall care for him who has borne the battle."
Trump "has now called on you to lead the department charged with that solemn and historic promise," Pence said.
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CNBC
While the nation's unemployment rate declines, the jobless trend for America's youngest veterans is climbing, jumping to 6.3 percent in January from 4.4 percent in September.
"We still see around half a million veterans that are unemployed right now, and over a million veterans that are underemployed," said Brian Stann, CEO of Hire Heroes USA. Economist note that the jobless rate for post-9/11 vets is volatile, and the small sample size leaves it open to inaccuracy.
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Four month average turn around with the VA’s Pension with Aid and Attendance
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Veterans Association of America wants to know...
How well will the new VA Secretary attempt to help veterans access better health care?
- I think the new VA Secretary will be very effect in providing better services.
- I'm not sure the VA Secretary will create easier initiatives for veterans.
- The VA Secretary will just be a puppet to President Trump's Administration.
- It's hard to tell what his vision is for securing swifter medical service for our veterans.
- I think we need to give the VA Secretary time to develop approaches that will eventually help veterans in the long run.
Please provide your unique response as we take each them very seriously..
As a reminder, we assess all answers with the utmost of care and consideration. Survey results revealed in next week's VAA Dispatch.
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Jan. 31 and Feb. 7 survey results: How well do you think President Trump's Immigration Policy is working for those currently residing in the United States?
Military Times
The military exchanges have the green light to open their online doors to veterans by Nov. 11, an idea initially proposed by a top exchange official nearly three years ago.
Defense Department officials notified the congressional oversight committees Jan. 11 of their intent to open up the military exchange online shopping benefit to all honorably discharged veterans. On Jan. 18, a memorandum went out with guidance for the military departments to implement the program by Nov. 11.
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U.S. Department of Defense
With the tax season upon us, service members and their families can access free tax-filing software and consultations to help them navigate the task of submitting their annual taxes. Military members and their families can visit the Military OneSource website or call 1-800-342-9647 for the no-cost "MilTax" software.
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Commercial Carrier Journal
One of the most powerful and visible members of the U.S. Senate wants to make it easier for members of the military leaving service to get civilian jobs, including those as truck drivers.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said veterans ought to be able to move into civilian jobs similar to those they performed while in uniform without additional training and without the expense of extensive paperwork.
Her remarks came during a meeting of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel held Feb. 14.
Addressing Sgt. Major of the Army Daniel Dailey, Warren said, "The Army trains thousands of soldiers every year to drive trucks in the most difficult conditions: In combat. With hazardous cargo. At night. In sandstorms. You name it. If it's tough, you train people to do it."
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Clean Technica
President Donald J. Trump says he wants to create American jobs, but he is cool to the idea of renewable energy, which he claims is "too expensive." Don’t tell that to the U.S. military, however. Last year, the Navy broke ground on a 4 megawatt solar array at the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Mississippi and the Army completed a large 30 MW solar array at Fort Benning, Georgia. Many soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan have seen first hand how human and economic resources are wasted to protect fossil fuel assets. After serving, they are also finding jobs in the solar industry.
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ABA Journal
Do you have computer coding skills, knowledge of veterans' legal issues — or maybe just the desire to help America's vets (and maybe win a cash prize)? Tech for Justice and the ABA Techshow are putting out a call for your support.
Tech for Justice is staging a hackathon during Techshow week, from March 11-17, to develop mobile apps and online resources that help veterans overcome common challenges.
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Playbill
Every performer brings his or her life experiences to the stage, but what happens when an actor has lived through war zones, combat, and trauma? For military veterans, theatre has the potential to be much more than just a pastime or a profession, it can help heal, and even save lives.
Acting, Victor Almanzar says, has saved his life on more than one occasion. When the Between Riverside and Crazy actor arrived in the U.S. as a 13-year-old immigrant from the Dominican Republic, he felt displaced. He gravitated towards the drama program at his high school, and later found a sense of belonging with a local theatre group. In 2000, Almanzar signed up for the Marines to work with heavy artillery.
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By John McAdams
 Will U.S. Army soldiers soon start using biodegradable training ammunition? According to a new solicitation the Department of Defense made with the Small Business Innovation Research Program, that is a goal the organization is hoping to achieve in the near future. In short, the Army hopes to start using training ammunition that is both biodegradable and contains seeds that will grow into plants to further remove soil contaminants.
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The News-Review
While serving in the U.S. Army in Oklahoma, Cody McGraw of Portland, Oregon, would help connect his fellow platoon members with military deals and savings. When they asked him where to find a list of the deals, McGraw had the idea for an application that would keep an updated account of stores offering discounts for veterans.
"I said if this isn't an app by the time I get out of the service, then I was going to try to figure out how to get it rolling," McGraw said. When he got out of the service in 2014, he went to work creating the app known as SCOUT Military.
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