North Branch resident and American Legion member Orville Otterness was in Washington, D.C. recently lobbying for issues that affect American war veterans.

Otterness, chairman of the legislative committee for the Minnesota American Legion, was one of 27 Minnesotans in Washington.
The delegation met with every Minnesota representative an senator and urged an agenda of veterans programs that Congress will be dealing with in the future including:

ï Fighting the cuts in VA funding. President Bush's budget calls for less money for VA health care and also a heft increase in drug co-pay and a fee of $250 annually for some veterans to use the system;

ï Making veterans' health care funding mandatory. Like Social Security and Medicare, veterans' health funding through the Veterans Administration should be mandatory and not subject to yearly cuts and debates;

ï The Flag Protection Amendment. The measure has been introduced in both the House and Senate. The bill calls for an amendment that would allow protection of the U.S. flag from physical desecration.
The delegation spent four days in Washington and the members attended information sessions on critical issues.
There are 112,000 members in the Minnesota American Legion.

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