ESTERO — Senator Marco Rubio paid a visit to Estero Tuesday afternoon, speaking with Vietnam veterans and honoring them for their service. He said it’s something they didn’t receive when they came home from the war.
During the ceremony, Sen. Rubio spoke to dozens of veterans at the Estero Recreation Center. They were all presented with ceremonial pins thanking them for their service.
One big accomplishment Sen. Rubio said he’s been able to achieve in Congress is helping those veterans get better service at VA hospitals by giving the VA Secretary more ability to manage staff.
Veterans at the event told us they’ve seen a difference.
"Today the VA Secretary can now identify supervisors and mid-level executives that aren’t doing a good job and he can fire them. They weren’t able to do that before, and that’s important. We want to make sure we’ve got a lot of good people at the VA, but if someone’s not doing their job, they need to go," said Sen. Rubio.
"Lately it’s gotten a heck of a lot better now for all of us veterans. They’re being recognized," said Mark Mangan, who served in the Army during the Vietnam War.
Sen. Rubio said about half the calls he receives at his office to this day are from veterans looking for help accessing services. That’s something he said his office makes a priority.
