[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When Senator Harkin was retiring,\Nand I was in the House and running for
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Senate, he called me over and he said,\N"Tammy, I'm handing the reins over to you."
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(laughing)
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,♪ (music) ♪
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It has just sort of fallen to me to
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,champion ADA issues, being a wheelchair user.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then, Senator Harkin was retiring\Nand I was in the House
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and running for the Senate,\Nhe called me over
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and he said,\N"Tammy, I'm handing the reins over to you."
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(laughter) "I'm handing the torch to you.\NYou need to be the torch bearer
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you need to really represent\Nthe entire disability community
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because you, frankly, would't be here\Nhad the disability community
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not been there\Nbefore you even became disabled."
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And he was absolutely right.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I find myself being the go-to person\Non a lot of the ADA issues
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as they come up in Congress.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,♪ (music) ♪
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I said, yes, I was honored.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I mean, to be able to be handed\Nthe mantle from
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Tome Harkin is quite the honor.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And you know,\NI don't know that I can fill his shoes,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but I try everyday to make sure\NI do my best to represent the community,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but also to just fight for basic common--
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and this is what I did in the Army,\NI fought for freedoms,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I fought for people's rights.\NAnd this is just a basic human right,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to be able to access the life\Nthat you want to access,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and live the life that you want to live
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to be not be confronted by barriers\Nat every turn.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,♪ (music) ♪
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I have been working on burn pit issues\Nfor a very long time, and it started
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from just my own experience\Nbeing exposed to the burn pits in Iraq.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We used to fly into Baghdad.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(cough)
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We were stationed in Balad\Nand we would fly into Baghdad
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into the the Green Zone.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And if you were on the ground\Nlooking up, it always, just the sky,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,always just looked a little overcast.\NIt didn't look anything, you know,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,ominous, but flying through about a\N50 foot, 100 foot layer of basically
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,brown skies, in the sky.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We used to burn the air crew's lungs\Nand you would go through there like,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Oh man, my eyes are watering,\Nmy lungs are burning, and I always said
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there was gonna be\Nsome respiratory illnesses.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then I started working on\NAgent Orange issues within the VA,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it was under President Obama\Nand Secretary Shinseki
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that we finally
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,granted benefits to veterans\Nbased on presumptive benefits.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So, if you develop (inudible) heart\Ndisease, if you develop leukemia B,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you were in Vietnam,\Nwe're going to presume that it's
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because of your Vietnam service.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We no longer force veterans to,\Nyou know, prove that their illness
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was caused by Agent Orange,\Nwhich is presumed.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then, so that really started me\Nworking on burn pits
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,after we were successful\Nwith the Agent Orange campaign.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And so it's pretty much been\Ncontinuous ever since, and I'm really glad
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we got the contract passed.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There's more work to do,\Nbut it's a great, great, great, great,
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,first start.
Dialogue: 0,9:59:59.99,9:59:59.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,♪ (music) ♪