Mace, Nancy: Good morning, and thank you all for being here. I am glad to be here in the Senate with Chariman Moran and Ranking Member Blumenthal. Chairman Bost wishes he could be here today, but due to travel issues caused by the recent snowstorm that we're enduring today, he could not make it. I would like to thank the DAV's National Commander Mr. Coleman Nee for being here today. I would also like to recognize the DAV Auxiliary National Commander Melissa Pierce. Thank you for being here today. A special shout out to Dan Pierce for being here as well. And I am pleased that there are folks here from across the country, including my home sate of South Carolina. Thank you for travelling through a blizzard, though the snow to be with us here this morning. If you're from South Carolina, please stand, I'd like to see some of my folks. There you are. God Bless you all, and thank you for travelling for travelling. I want to give a warm welcome to those folks. This year marks my fifth year on the committee. Veterans have always been part of my life. I grew up around veterans. I know veterans. And they have always been part of our community and my families community. Everytime I'm on the house floor debating a bill or sitting on the dais, I'm always thinking of them. And men like my dad, the generations of men and women who've served, my siblings, and in fact I just had one come back from a deployment overseas in the Middle East. For me it's always about taking care of our veteran community when they come home. I know the sacrifices of you each of you have made especially our disabled community. Each of you has fought to protect the freedoms we hold dear. I along with my House Republican colleagues are leading the charge to to the Sherry Briley and Eric Edmondson Veterans Benefits Expansion Act that we reported out of the committee two weeks ago. The bill would raise the monthly benefits rate for the most severely service-connected disabled veterans that require around-the-clock care by offering an additional $10,000 annually. It would also boost the monthly support payment that veteran survivors receive by an additional 1.5 percent annually over the next two years. These increases have made have been made haven't been made in decades. I need your support to help ensure they are not caught up in an election year political games and that they are finally enacted. Second, ensure veterans get quality health care at the VA or within the community. That's why we're fighting for the Veterans Access Act which is common-sense legislation to build and solidify the gains made in the Choice and Mission Acts. The bill would give veterans even more options in how they access their health care outside of the VA, especially veterans living in rural and remote areas. Third, reauthorize VA to make sure the VA's programs work for today's and tomorrow's veterans, something that has not been done in decades. The importance of the Transition Assistance Program or TAP is an area that remains a key priority for me and many of us all of us on the VA committee. Ensuring that service members are set up for their next mission in life is not something I take lightly. Thank you to the DAV for highlighting the importance of new veterans understanding the benefits they have earned and that they deserve. We are also committed to ensuring opportunities for veterans to explore non-traditional education, whether that be through apprenticeships, on-the-job training, during TAP, or the Veteran Readiness and Employment Program. We must continue to focus our efforts to ensure veterans are able to find and maintain meaningful employment. The DAV plays an important role in making sure we advance common-sense proposals and conduct oversight to meet the needs of all veterans, no matter their zip code and no matter where they work. Veterans should have the choice to use the benefits VA offers in exchange for their service to meet their own needs. You know where we need to push the agency forward and not stick to the status quo. I can promise you one thing, my House Republican colleagues, and I will never stop fighting for you and the voices you represent, the hundreds of thousands of veterans outside the DC care on time, their benefits without a headache, and to live the American dream. We take this mission seriously and I know my House and Senate Republican colleagues as well as VA Secretary Doug Collins and President Trump do too. We made progress with the most recent NDAA and I proudly supported the following major provisions. Enhancing the financial planning section of TAP to cover topics such as debt management, taxes, and investing. Improving the warm handover process between VA, DOW, and DOL. Allowing service members to attend TAP multiple times and encourage folks to bring their spouses along too. These things make a real difference for transitioning service members and they must have all the tools needed to prepare for their next phase of life with their family. We will continue to fight to deliver historic economic relief for all including severely disabled veterans like Eric Edmondson and survivors like Sheree Briley. We will continue to fight to modernize the VA and its programs forward through reauthorization. We will continue to ensure veterans no matter where they live get the health care they deserve at the VA or in their community. you and thank you again for being here today and with that I will recognize the member Takano for his opening remarks.