Louisiana Veterans Affairs Secretary Blasted After Investigation

Investigation blasts former veterans affairs secretary
The New Star
Greg Hilburn
February 1, 2016

Former Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary was fired by former Gov. Bobby Jindal Oct. 8.

(Photo: GANNETT LOUISIANA)

Former Louisiana Veterans Affairs Secretary Dave LaCerte is accused of improperly funneling funds to a company owned by former law school classmates, lying about his military service record and inflating travel expenses in a joint report released today by the state's legislative auditor and inspector general.

LaCerte's attorney, Jarrett Ambeau of Baton Rouge, denied all of the investigation's findings in a letter to Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera.

"The Joint Investigation Report's findings are patently false, blatant character assassination and appear to be a calculated attack on the integrity and credibility for (LaCerte)," Ambeau wrote.

But former Interim Veterans Affairs Secretary Thomas Enright and newly-appointed Veterans Affairs Secretary Joey Strickland concurred with the findings in written responses.

"I am disturbed to learn that the previous LDVA secretary deviated from a veteran-focused mind-set and that this contributed to many of the problems cited in your report," Strickland wrote. "... I firmly believe that once the reforms I put in place are fully implemented, LDVA will be back on track and again focused on its mission of supporting Louisiana veterans and their families."
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Army Ranger Double Amputee Running For Congress

W Mich. native running for Congress in Fla.
24 Hour News 8 web staff
Published: January 31, 2016

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A West Michigan native who lost both of his legs while serving overseas is now campaigning to represent part of Florida in Congress.

Brian Mast graduated from South Christian High School in Grand Rapids in 1999, after which he joined the U.S. Army. After more than 12 years in the service, he lost both of his legs in an explosion while serving as a bomb disposal expert in Afghanistan.

Now, he wants to represent Florida’s 18th Congressional District.

“I don’t know how I go through life and think that the best thing that I’ve done in my life is now in my past,” he told 24 Hour News 8 in a Facetime interview on Sunday. “Or the best defense that I’ve given our country is now behind me. And I told her that’s where I ultimately thought about running for Congress, hoping that the best would still be ahead of me.”

He was featured in an episode of “Live to Tell” on the History Channel. The episode aired Sunday night and was scheduled to air again at 2 a.m. Monday.
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Sarah Palin Denies PTSD Blame Game

Palin still has no clue how much harm she did to veterans. Not just in her speech but as Governor of Alaska.

Sarah Palin Freaks Out on ‘Today Show’ Over PTSD Question
Daily Beast
Andrew Kirell
February 1, 2016

Donald Trump's highest-profile endorser had a meltdown Monday morning.

Sarah Palin doesn't like being asked questions about questionable things she has said.

That was the lesson Today Show anchor Savannah Guthrie learned Monday morning when she asked the former Alaska governor about her controversial remarks connecting her son's alleged post-traumatic stress disorder to President Obama.

"I want to ask you about something you mentioned on the campaign trail," Guthrie said. 

"You said that President Obama may be to blame for some of the PTSD that's out there."

"I never said that," Palin shot back.

Nevertheless, Palin attempted to explain away the remarks to her stunned hosts. "I never blamed President Obama," she asserted. "What I have blamed President Obama in doing, though, is this level of disrespect for the United States military that has made manifest in cutting budgets, in not trying to beef it up and let our military do the job they're trained to do, and in specific issues we're talking about that are so hot today, specifically, let's get in there and utterly destroy ISIS."
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PTSD Veteran Racing To Top of Empire State Building at 70

At 70, Vietnam Veteran From Middletown To Race Up Empire State Building
Courant
Erik Hesselberg Special to Courant
February 1, 2016

Jerry Augustine (center) with buddies at Tay Nin Military base, near the Cambodian border north of Saigon. (Jerry Augustine / hc)

MIDDLETOWN — At the Empire State Building, Jerry Augustine doesn't take the elevator. He sprints up 1,576 stairs to the 86th-floor observation deck.

Augustine, a Vietnam War veteran, belongs to an elite group of tower runners who bolt up 86 floors of the 1,200-foot skyscraper in less than 15 minutes. A few do it in a gasping 10 minutes.

Augustine has run the race eight times, placing first, second and third in his age group. His best time is 14 minutes, 28 seconds. That was in 1998. He was 52 years old at the time.

Now 70, the Vietnam veteran, who said he started running to cope with his PTSD symptoms, wants to see if he's still got it. Augustine is running in the 39th annual Empire State Building Run-up in New York City on Wednesday.
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Fort Hood Gets New Center for Healing

Fort Hood satellite center 'symbolizes hope' for injured soldiers
Killeen Daily Herald
JC Jones
Herald staff writer
January 31, 2016

“It symbolizes that no matter what the soldier has been through, they may be broken, but they’re still standing, and able to heal. It really symbolizes hope,” said Christopher Miller, chief nursing officer at the Intrepid Center.

Eric J. Shelton | Herald

Fort Hood Intrepid Center

FORT HOOD — Soldiers being treated for traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder now have a new home for treatment at Fort Hood.

The National Intrepid Center of Excellence Satellite Center at Fort Hood opened its doors to patients for the first time Jan. 11, ushering in a new era of care on post.

The 25,000-square-foot facility includes state-of-the-art technology, a fully functioning gym, a yoga and meditation area, group session rooms, an outdoor patio and a staff of health care and mental health professionals, all to offer a multidisciplinary, holistic approach to treating TBI, PTSD and other conditions.

“Some of the equipment that we have here now is going to allow us to be better able to quantify objectively how service members are doing upon their initiation of treatment, and then what happens while they’re going through treatment,” Dr. Scot Engel, the center’s director, said.

Ground broke on the center in June 2014. It is the fifth of its kind on military installations across the country, all part of a joint effort by the government and the private sector. The Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, a nonprofit organization, donated $11 million to Fort Hood’s Intrepid Center. A similar facility at Fort Bragg, N.C., also opened recently.
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