On Saturday, December 17, IAVA Senior Writing Manager Matt Gallagher appeared on CNN and spoke about what the end of the Iraq War means to him and the approximately 1 million veterans who served in OIF/OND. "It's a very surreal time... for all veterans of Iraq," Gallagher said.
On Thursday, December 15, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta attended a ceremony in Baghdad which officially concluded the American war in Iraq. IAVA Senior Membership Associate Timothy Kudo, an OIF/OEF veteran and a former Captain in the Marine Corps, reacts to the news that the war is over.
"I think everyone that served over there is going to look back on this... as a defining moment in their generation," Kudo affirmed.
On Saturday, October 22 IAVA Senior Legislative Associate Tom Tarantino appeared on MSNBC and reacted to the news that all U.S. troops will be out of Iraq by the end of the year. “It’s time that we as a country take this announcement as a call to action, to step up and serve those who have served us,” he said.
On October 21, IAVA Founder and Executive Director Paul Rieckhoff went on CNN and reacted to the news that all troops will be out of Iraq by the end of the year. "It's a really poignant time," he said. "Many of us gave large parts of our lives—some gave all—in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom." Click here to read IAVA's statement on the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.
On the 10th anniversary of the war, IAVA's Senior Membership Associate Timothy Kudo joined CBS The Early Show to talk about his service in Afghanistan and why our country needs to double down in its commitment to support our returning troops.
On October 5th, IAVA's Senior Legislative Associate Tom Tarantino discussed the validity of a Pew Research Center Poll, which suggests that the majority of Americans think the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were not worth the effort.
IAVA Board Member Wes Moore and TIME columnist Joe Klein joined Chris Matthews on Hardball to dicuss Klein's cover story, The New Greatest Generation. Moore and four other IAVA Member Veterans were featured on the cover. See the cover here and read the piece here.
Over 500 IAVA Member Veterans and their families came together to attend the Washington Nationals game on Tuesday, August 16th. Available because of IAVA's partnership with Miller High Life, the vets and families were treated to a pre-game event with food and drink, and one member even got to throw out the first pitch. You can learn more here.
IAVA Board Member Wes Moore and TIME columnist Joe Klein discussed Klein's cover story on new veterans being leaders on Morning Joe. RMoore and four other IAVA Member Veterans, including IAVA Executive Director Paul Rieckhoff, were featured on the cover. See the cover here and read the piece here.
IAVA Member Veteran Jonathan Raab joined Last Call with Lawrence O'Donnell to discuss veteran unemployment. One of the main topics of discussion was Jonathan's recent New York Timespiece highlighting his own experiences with job struggles as a veteran. This fall, Jonathan will redeploy to Afghanistan.
