When are @JDVance and Trump going to stop denigrating the men and women who honorably serve our country?

JD knows personally that signing up to serve does not always mean you see combat — 90% of servicemembers don’t.

🧵1/14 I signed up for the Marines before 9/11 with no idea I’d serve 4 tours in Iraq soon after.

We should respect all who serve, no matter their roles; and we should celebrate the fact that, for the first time since 2004, we have veterans on both major parties’ presidential tickets.

Today with @RepMeijer I visited Kabul airport to conduct oversight on the evacuation.

Witnessing our young Marines and soldiers at the gates, navigating a confluence of humanity as raw and visceral as the world has ever seen, was indescribable. It’s a reminder of why America’s values—when we live up to them—matter to people all over the world.

I’ve never talked to more public servants, from salty Marines to the most seasoned State Department officials, who came to tears describing their work.

Our Afghan partners—the heroes who risked their lives not just for their country but for ours—will be killed along with their families if we leave them behind. Getting them to safety is a moral imperative. When service members ask local partners to risk their lives and help us, we make them a promise: we will have your back. For 20 years in Afghanistan we have given them America’s promise. We must keep it.

It's 4/20, so let's talk about weed. Here are a few of the reasons it's so important that we prioritize legalizing marijuana and clearing the records of those with marijuana-related offenses. We know that people of color in this country—specifically Black Americans—are disproportionately arrested for marijuana possession. Part of reforming our criminal justice system means getting rid of laws that allow for discriminatory enforcement.

Some thoughts as we await Derek Chauvin's verdict.

It is patriotic to criticize the police. They enforce the laws on your behalf. Like me, they work for you. Demand that they change. Protest is patriotic. We don't know how the jury will decide, but in any case, Americans are rightfully angry. Protest peacefully.

This doesn’t have to be a dream. In fact, high-speed rail is one of the smartest investments we can make right now. vox.com/2021/3/10/2230… We need to go big to recover from the pandemic. Infrastructure can help us lock in the growth that will come through the recovery. But, America can do better than filling the last generation's potholes and sitting in traffic on new highways.

We are a nation founded in dissent, birthed in freedom, committed to equality, and yet regularly reminded that we struggle to achieve all three. The President has made it clear that the fight for these Constitutional principles is a fight against himself. We must therefore, with every ounce of conviction, every commitment to peace, and every glimmer of hope, join in lawful protest to overcome his tyranny.

Through all the dark days of the Iraq War to the multiple follies of the Trump Administration to date, I have never heard such an uprising among young leaders in the military as I hear from multiple trusted sources tonight. Navy leadership is in total crisis. It centers around the contemptuous A-SECNAV, but extends above to SECDEF Esper and POTUS and encompasses all the senior admiral-enablers.

The other candidates are right about Bernie’s $1.6 trillion student loan plan. (thread) —J For $52 billion a year, we can end child poverty. —J childrensdefense.org/wp-content/upl…

I'm giving remarks now at #SCDemWeekend. Follow along here. During my tours in Iraq, the Marines I led asked me a lot of questions, from big things like what rocket to use to small things like how to send a postcard to their family.

But there was one question that was the hardest: “Sir, why the hell are we risking our lives for this?"

Last week, I visited Puerto Rico with other members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation. We witnessed awe-inspiring destruction, American citizens lacking basics like power and water for months, and public servants dedicated to helping fellow Americans recover. First stop: a hospital for disabled children. They're having trouble keeping the lights on. These solar panels were provided by @tesla, but they must be connected to the electrical grid as a secondary source, and the utility co. wasn't returning calls to provide the link.