Veteran advocate receives Legion’s highest award

Dr. Phil Roe, who served as both chairman and ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs before retiring in 2020, received The American Legion’s Distinguished Service Medal on stage at the 103rd National Convention in Milwaukee Aug. 30. The award is presented to those who made great contributions to veterans.

“On behalf of myself and my wife and family, and dedicated congressional staff and VA staff I had, I tell you that I am overwhelmed, and I can’t thank you enough,” Roe, a Paid Up for Life Legionnaire, expressed to The American Legion delegation. “It’s a ‘we’ because there is no ‘I’ in team and we did this as a team. I humbly accept this award. And I’m gratefully and truly overwhelmed.

“Also, I want to thank the (American Legion) Auxiliary. I think you all do an amazing job for veterans around the country, and you’re not thanked enough.”

Before retiring from Congress, Roe was instrumental in passage of American Legion-supported legislation, such as the Forever GI Bill, VA MISSION Act and Blue Water Navy Veterans Act.

Roe said that when he ran for Congress, he told voters three things that “I will never, ever apologize for supporting. Number one, if you’re a soldier in the field, I want you to have whatever you need to protect yourself and your comrades. So I’m always going to support the military. Number two, when you come home, I’m going to support the veterans because it’s your blood, sweat and sacrifice that have allowed me to live, and those in this country to live, safely. And number three, I’m going to support agriculture because I like to eat.

“When I was elected (in 2008), I thought the Veterans Affairs Committee is a perfect committee for me.”

Roe became chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs in 2017. “When I became the chairman, I told my staff, ‘We have no control of what anybody else does. All we have is control over what we do. So let’s get to work,’” he said. “To work we did.”

In two years, the committee passed over 50 veteran-specific bills when “it’s hard to pass one bill” in that time. And 25 of those bills were signed into law by the president. One of those was the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017, which was signed on stage during The American Legion's 99th national convention in Reno, Nev., by President Trump.

The VA MISSION Act was one of those 25 bills. “We had to write a bill that was good for rural America and urban America, which we did,” Roe said. “And the second part of that bill, let me tell you who I wanted to put in charge of medical choices: the patient, the veteran, not the bureaucracy, not the medical hospital, but the patient. That’s who I wanted in charge of those decisions.”

Another aspect of the bill, which Roe said was important to him and previous Distinguished Service Medal recipients Sen. Bob Dole and Elizabeth Dole, was the caregiver part,lj where all veterans could receive care at home.

With the Blue Water Navy Veterans Act, Roe said there was 10 years worth of research put in. As for two studies he reviewed regarding the effects of Agent Orange on “whether it was harmful or not, I said always, when there’s that question, decide on the side of the veteran who served this nation, and we did and we got that passed,” Roe said to an applause from Legionnaires.

Roe called The American Legion peacemakers as he quoted from the Bible. “Matthew 5, Chapter 9, has a verse that is very near and dear to my heart. It’s, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers so they shall be called the children of God.’ I believe that you are, and know in my heart, that I stand in front of the world’s peacemakers.”

His explanation for this statement was that because of those who served in World War II, 750 million people are free in Europe, 125 million people are free in Japan and 50 million people are free in Korea. “Because peacemakers like you made that happen. God bless you and thank you for that.”

In closing, Roe said that while people may say America’s best days are behind us, “empathetically I will tell you no, that is not true. Because I’ve traveled this country, I saw on this (national convention) stage today what people did for their fellow men, hundreds of thousands of dollars raised by the Legion, and I’ve seen the goodness expressed in a thousand different ways by the people of America.”

The Distinguished Service Medal is the second award Roe has received from The American Legion. He was presented with The American Legion’s Distinguished Public Service Award in 2018 for his veteran advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill. 

“I can’t express to you how much I appreciate and what this (Distinguished Service Medal award) means to me and the people I’ve worked with on the Veterans Affairs Committee,” said Roe.