This upcoming Sunday, the people of Venezuela will hold an election that, if legitimate, would put an end to years of the oppressive Maduro narco-regime. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) issued a statement in support of the Venezuelan people: “The...
NOTICIAS
Últimas Noticias
Rubio: “La Tenacidad y Valentía del Pueblo venezolano Estarán a la Vista”
Este próximo domingo, el pueblo venezolano tendrá una elección que, de ser legítima, pondría fin a años de opresión por parte del narco-régimen de Maduro. El senador estadounidense Marco Rubio (R-FL) grabó un mensaje de video en español y emitió una declaración en...
Rubio, Scott, Colleagues to Biden Admin: No Privileges Should Be Given to 9/11 Terrorist
Twenty-three years ago, the United States was attacked by Islamic terrorists on September 11, 2001. Now, Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in a U.S. court for his role in the attack, has requested the U.S. Department of Justice to allow a prisoner transfer...
Next Week: Rubio Staff Hosts Mobile Office Hours
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) office will host virtual Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their respective local communities. These office hours offer constituents who do not live close to one of Senator Rubio’s...
Rubio, Colleagues Introduce Ensuring Continuity in Veterans’ Health Act
As the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) opens up new facilities, many veterans are losing access to the VA’s Community Care Program and, consequently, their long-term healthcare providers. Veterans throughout the country have reported a loss of care, including...
Rubio Introduces Bill to Strengthen U.S.-India Security Partnership
The U.S.-India partnership is vital to countering influences from Communist China. In order to strengthen this partnership, it is essential to enhance our strategic diplomatic, economic, and military relationship with New Delhi. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)...
Rubio, Scott Urge Army, Air Force to Address Lack of Childcare for 7th Special Forces Group
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rick Scott (R-FL) sent a letter to U.S. Army Secretary Christine Wormuth and U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall regarding the lack of childcare facilities for members of the 7th Special Forces Group (7th SFG) at Camp Bull Simons on Eglin Air Force Base. The senators initially raised this concern in February 2020.
“Those who raise their hand and volunteer to serve in our armed forces, and their families, make great sacrifices to protect and defend our nation,” the senators wrote. “They require their leaders to deliver what was promised when they signed up. When we fail to deliver for our service members, lethality declines, quality of life drops, morale plummets, and retention rates fall.”
El full text of the letter .
We write to express our continued concern with the ongoing lack of child care for our U.S. Army 7th Special Forces Group operators and families at Camp Bull Simons on Eglin Air Force Base (AFB). We continue to hear from many in the community about the lack of access to a Child Development Center (CDC) due to long distances and lengthy waiting lists. The stories are heart-wrenching, and the impact this is having on both families and readiness is unacceptable.
Since our February 2020 letter to then U.S. Army Secretary McCarthy, we have engaged the leadership of Eglin AFB and held discussions with others across the U.S. Department of Defense to better understand the problem, make sure the appropriate teams were communicating with one another, and find a path forward. After these discussions, we are concerned with the shortcomings by the Air Force in facilitating an appropriate and timely solution for the impacted soldiers of 7th SFG on Camp Bull Simons.
While we are grateful for the temporary solution of partnering with two private childcare facilities in Okaloosa and Santa Rosa Counties, one of these facilities will not be operational for some time. The other is nearly an hour drive, each way, from the 7th SFG compound. Further, neither facility has the capacity to meet the demand of the community, many of whom do not put themselves on the waitlist for main base Eglin’s CDC because the cost of gas and time spent traveling is prohibitive. The lack of urgency and failure to understand the depth of the impact this is having on our operators is growing increasingly frustrating for us and for our constituents.
We are pursuing language in the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act to work toward rectifying this wrong as quickly as possible, but the decision to take care of our operators and their families comes down to the two of you. It is critical to provide a solution to the acute short-term need, and be forward looking to find a solution capable of accommodating the right number of children at a location that is easily accessible for the operators serving at Camp Bull Simons.
Those who raise their hand and volunteer to serve in our armed forces, and their families, make great sacrifices to protect and defend our nation. They require their leaders to deliver what was promised when they signed up. When we fail to deliver for our service members, lethality declines, quality of life drops, morale plummets, and retention rates fall. Further, we have recently learned of the alarming decline in recruitment, which is to be expected when the Department of Defense continues to fail our service members and their families.
As the Army dictum goes: “mission first, people always.” We must take concrete steps to ensure that this is more than just a slogan. Taking care of our operators’ children is an obvious place to start, and addressing this issue must be a top priority.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Atentamente,