Chet Edwards For Congress

(Waco, Texas) – U.S. Representative Chet Edwards (D-Waco) today endorsed U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill) for President and released the following statement:

“As the father of two young sons, I care deeply about the future of our nation, and that is why I am endorsing Senator Barack Obama for President of the United States.

I believe Senator Obama can bring about real change in Washington--change that will make a positive difference in the lives of average working Americans struggling to keep up with the high costs of health care, gasoline and education.

By voting for Senator Obama, we can say it is time to turn away from the divisive partisan politics of the past and work together for a brighter future for our children and our grandchildren. As he has reminded us so eloquently, we are not “a red America or a blue America. We are the United States of America.”

January 24, 2008

Chet Edwards to Receive VFW Congressional Award

Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2008--America's oldest major veterans' organization has selected Texas Rep. Chet Edwards (D-17th) to receive its 2008 Congressional Award for his outstanding service to veterans, servicemembers and their families. The congressman, who chairs the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, will be presented the award March 3 at the annual Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. Community Service and Legislative Conference at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in northwest Washington.

"This award is extremely important to the VFW," said VFW National Commander George Lisicki, a Vietnam veteran from Carteret, N.J., "because it recognizes a champion who is in our corner in Congress."

November 5, 2007

Chet Edwards: Cooperation vs. congestion

Waco Tribune Herald
By Chet Edwards

Click-2-Listen

Three hundred and fifty-nine million hours. That is how many hours Texans will spend in congested traffic this year. Unfortunately, that’s the good news.

The bad news:

That number will double over the next 10 years unless Texans take dramatic steps.

That is why 24 Texans in Congress, Republicans and Democrats, have joined together to endorse Proposition 12 on Tuesday’s ballot.

I must say, in my years in Congress I’ve never seen this kind of bipartisan cooperation on anything.

August 21, 2007

Editorial: Edwards' help still needed at VA

Waco Tribune Herald
By Editorial Staff

If anyone deserves a tribute for working to save the Waco Veterans Affairs Medical Center it is U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards.

He will get it Wednesday when the city hosts a reception in his honor.

But it needs to be more than a tribute. It needs to be a pep rally. As much as Edwards and other allies have done to preserve the hospital, much needs to be done to enhance services and utilize an under-used campus.

In June, a similar reception was held to recognize U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison for her decisive efforts in saving the hospital.

In her campaign to save the VA campus, Hutchison made several important visits to Waco, especially when she accompanied both the VA secretaries on tours of the facility.

She also sponsored legislation to designate the hospital a “mental health center of excellence.”

But no one was as diligent about this task as Edwards. His hands-on efforts helped blunt the proposal to move all of Waco’s mental health treatment programs, blind rehabilitation treatment and geriatric care units to the Olin E. Teague Veterans Medical Center in Temple and to farm its services elsewhere around the country.

July 24, 2007

Minimum Wage Rises For First Time In A Decade

KWTX-TV

"I believe an honest day's work deserves an honest day's pay and this needed increase rewards work, not welfare,” Edwards said.

The federal minimum wage goes up Tuesday for the first time in ten years, jumping 70 cents to $5.85 an hour.

It's the first of three, 70-cent increases that will hike the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour by the summer of 2009.

The government says more than 1.5 million American workers made the old minimum wage of $5.15 an hour or less last year.

The increase is one of the few major legislative successes of the new Democratic-controlled Congress.

President Bush signed the measure into law after the Democrats removed a provision calling for the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq.

The bill also contains nearly $5 billion worth of tax relief for small businesses to help them hire new workers.

The relief will also help offset the cost of the higher wage.

As many as 17 million Texans and 50,000 military families will benefit from the increase, Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, said.

"I believe an honest day's work deserves an honest day's pay and this needed increase rewards work, not welfare,” Edwards said.