Brooks is blurred through his glasses because he is so close and brooks strikes sumner on the top of the head with a cane. Sumners head explodes in blood almost instantly. Author Stephen Puleo on the caning of massachusetts senator Charles Sumner by South Carolina congressman Preston Brooks that drove the country closer to civil war. Sunday night at eight eastern and pacific on cspans q a. On tuesday gary sydni spoke to the National Press club in washington dc about his advocacy for u. S. Veterans and the work of the Gary Sinise Foundation. This is an hour. [captioning performed by the National Captioning Institute which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] welcome to the national restaurant. Im an editor for bloomberg thats our breaking news desk here in washington, and im the president of the National Press on. Our guest today is actor, humanitarian gary sinise. He will discuss challenges facing americas servicemen and women, and what can be done and support their loved ones. But first i want i want to discuss it includes press club numbers and guess of our speakers publisher of stars stripes, jim jensen, Derek Perkins staff writer for marine corps times president of the Speakers Committee and the washington getting over a speaker for a moment director of communications for fedex thank you melissa. Paul Statement National security correspondent for u. S. News world report. Andrea mccarran, reporter with usa today w usa tv, and a usa today contributor. And starting thursday, a military service. Razor. Robert hume, director of Political Research at cnn. Communications and less legislative fellow covering issues for mike honda. I also want to welcome our cspan in public radio audiences. And you can follow the action today on twitter. Use the npc lunch even though this is the breakfast. Use npclunch it was here at the National Press club, in 2011 that he announced the launch of the Gary Sinise Foundation. The gary the foundations mission is to boost troop morale for servicemen and women who are in transition. The foundations projects include providing custom smartphones but even for the desperate for the foundation, he used his celebrity that can support of u. S. Military personnel. His band has performed around the world. The band is called Lieutenant Dan band. It is named for his Academy Award nominated role as wounded vietnam war veteran Lieutenant Dan in the movie forest gone. You might knows the for other roles as well. He spent nearly a decade playing detective mac taylor in the tv program csi new york. He also had roles in movies such as apollo 13 the green mile, and ransom. Its his role as servicemember advocate he seems to enjoy best. Sinise serves a spokesman for the medal of honor museum. He is the patron of the g. I. Film festival which highlights movies that positively portray veterans, and the military. He has cohosted the National Memorial day concert for a decade, and is certainly a familiar face here in washington in that regard. And sinise is the recipient of the president ial citizens medal. Thats the second highest honor of deeds performed for the Nation Service members. Tonight, the National Association of Broadcasters Education Foundation will award him its highest individual honor, the service to america leadership award. Ladies and gentlemen, please join me and giving a more National Press club welcome to mr. Gary sinise. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much. Its good to be back. I do want to say something. Last time i was here, there was a big sort of wooden medallion here on the back and about halfway through my speech, it fell down. So im glad its not here. Its a great honor for me to return. Since having first at the opportunity it in 2007 which after 16 years was finally dedicated and open to the public on october 5 i guess i have not burn any bridges at the press club yet. They keep asking me that. Thank you. I would like to speak a little today about how far the Gary Sinise Foundation has come in those four years with the work the foundation is doing and what the future looks like as we continue to grow. And i would like to emphasize how important it is to have nonprofits in the military support space as our military servicemen and women continue as our men and women continue to confront the dark forces in this world with long and very tough deployments. But first one of our Board Members is here. Thank you for coming bob, i appreciate you being here sir. I have a very distinguished just year that john introduced, a friend of mine who is here with us today. General James E Livingston was awarded the United States hires military decoration, the medal of honor for heroic actions in 1968 during the vietnam war. And on that fateful day, captain livingston and about 800 fellow marines ran up against a north Vietnamese Company of 10,000 strong enemy combatants. 10,000. Against 800 marines. What captain livingston says was a fair fight. During the ensuing fight captain livingston was wounded three times despite his wounds, they destroyed over 100 mutually supporting enemy bunkers, repel the savage enemy counterattack and refused to be evacuated from the field until he was assured that the safety of his men. He would serve to combat tours in vietnam. He was presented the medal of honor on may 14, 1970 by president then. Rising in the ranks, he retired from the marine corps as a major general. General livingstons philosophy on leadership is to lead from the front. He said finally that is true and inspiring. General livingston, thank you for being here. It is said that america will always be the land of the free as long as it is the home of the brave. A community, a city, a country can only flourish if its people have the peace in their life and liberty of the opportunity in doing so, they make their Community Flourish with commerce and trade in this is driven to be the greatest, strongest, and most profitable nation on the air. So much of our way of life is secure with the sacrifices being made each and every day, there comes much need. That is why it is so important to have successful nonprofits in the military support base. As government alone cannot possibly feel there been so many experiences that have led me to realize we must be there for a minute and women in uniform to make sure that they are there to take care before during and after the battle. Wanting to do something to support, i began to volunteer for the uso. Going on handshake doors and Entertainment Stores with my band that letter military know that they were appreciated. There we were thinking of them and that their service and sacrifice did not go unnoticed. During the think giving holiday in 2009, i was visiting pogrom air force base in afghanistan and the director of operations for central command, providing oversight for all military operations including iraq and afghanistan, the general invited me to the ramp ceremony where the u. S. Military would load the casket on the plane to repatriate his remains back to america. When my eyes saw and what my heart felt that day has always stayed with me. I watched hundreds of american servicemen and women from all branches most of them, including myself never knew this soldier personally, but they gathered information in his honor to pay their respects and offer a farewell salute to a brave fellow american soldier. The mood was somber. The casket draped with an American Flag was carried by eight members of his unit moving slowly and solemnly onto the plane as the formation was commanded to give their final salute to an american who gave his last full measure and devotion for his country. Indeed, a sight to behold. Members of his unit who the day before were fighting by his side placed his casket on the bed of the c17 kneeled down around it and offer their final prayers and farewells. To their brother. The rest of the formation followed suit, ranked by right traveling up the ramp of the c17 to pay their respects. It was my sobering honor to be by the generals side as we entered the plane and knelt down beside the casket. I was flooded with the motion for this young man and his family full the painful and sobering reminder of the cost of freedom. In looking back on my own journey working with veterans groups in the chicago area in the 1980s, supporting our wounded through the disabled Veterans Administration in the 1990s, and post 9 11, as i began to decide the full weight that our servicemen and women carried with them into battle and oftentimes bring home with them when they return from long deployments, i began to support many military charities and participating in as many support concerts and fundraising events as i could to raise awareness spirits, and support them. In 2011, i want all of my endeavors together to serve our veterans under one umbrella. In four years, with the generosity and support of the American People, we have been able to start numerous programs in order to make an important difference in the lives of our servicemembers. From building smart homes providing adapted vehicles and mobility devices restoring independence, supporting empowerment and putting on resiliency concerts at military hospitals to boost morale. To raising the spirits of the children of our Fallen Heroes providing a funding for needy military families, supporting First Responders and communities all around the country each day. We are helping veterans, military families, and First Responders find the strength and support that they need to move forward in their lives and we are impacting the unities that they live in. As john said when i last spoke here in june 2011, i had been a part of Fundraising Efforts to build three smart homes for catastrophically wounded servicemembers. Three of our quadruple amputees who had returned from iraq and afghanistan. I am proud to say that up to five quadruple amputees, four of them are living in new homes and a home is in progress for the fifth. By the end of 2015, the gary finneys foundation will have participated in the development or construction of up to 35 homes for those suffering very serious, lifechanging injuries. These homes give our wounded heroes, their families, their freedom and independence that. I am proud to say that prior to the creation of the foundation and the four years since, the Lieutenant Dan band has performed 318 concerts worldwide in support of our nations defenders and their families. 140 concerts for the uso. 178 fundraising and benefit concerts. We just performed at the hotel in coronado on sunday night for a big veterans support concert. The band is part of our nonprofit and is now a program of the foundation. Through our invincible spirit festival which we put at our nations military medical centers, complete with a live concert and a delicious cookout donated by celebrity chef Robert Irvine and the folks at the Great Food Company cisco, we have listed over 50,000 spirits of our heroes, their families, their caregivers, and the hospital staff. Giving them a respite from the rigors of medical treatment and reminding them of the hope and positivity along the road to recovery. Through our serving Heroes Program we have shown gratitude to our nations defenders by serving them a hearty, classic american meal. To date, we have served over 27,000 meals to five major travel hubs across the nation. And we are looking to expand our efforts to include other venues at other airports throughout the country. Our gary finneys Foundation Relief and Resiliency Program has helped 1294 veterans and their families in their times of urgent need. 162 children, family members of the fallen, 156 veterans, and 944 wounded. We have trained 45 firefighters in black forest, colorado after the devastating fires there. We have supported the families of the hotshots in prescott, arizona after 19 firefighters were lost in a deadly fires from. We donated two Lieutenant Dan fans to transport ill and injured member of the fdny and their families to medical facilities. We have awarded six rants to police, fire, and ems services. Other programs include our arts and entertainment are reached, taking veterans to the theater around the country for a free meal and a performance. As part of our educational outreach, we have a new world war ii program. A most recent partnership with the National World War Ii Museum in new orleans. The Gary Sinise Foundation has helped finance a historian who has to date recorded 35 world war ii veteran stories, oral histories, preserved on video in the museum archives. Preserving americas history and their legacy. We will also include a trip next week for 50 world war ii veterans from california to see this magnificent museum built in their honor. We have come a long way in four short years and are impacting the lives of veterans and activeduty across the nation. It is truly the most Rewarding Mission i have had in my life to serve the members of our military. One of the hardest things to come to terms with when you endeavor to a life of service is the a normandy of the need that exist today. It has to be up on us and our communities to close the gap and meet that need. With all of the bureaucracy and inefficiencies and the difficult challenges currently being reported within the v. A. , it is important that there are successful nonprofits in the military support space and that we engage, encourage, and inspire as many communities within this country as possible to address the need. I applaud all the military nonprofits that are here today doing the good work. During the conflicts in afghanistan and iraq, we have seen remarkable advances in field medicine and care. While this may have reduced the number of casualties, many more have returned home injured or seriously wounded. As we have now been at work for the last 14 years, roughly 50,000 military personnel currently live among us bearing severe wounds of war both physically and mentally. There struggles can affect the entire household and ongoing treatment can quickly become ruinously expensive. We have become aware of the startling shortfall in the care of these men and that these men and women often face. The media, they have provided troubling glimpses of the healthrelated complications that veterans experience in seeking care. The Bigger Picture is alarming. Survey data suggest that 71 percent of americans do not understand what combat veterans indoor and 84 of veterans hold polls said the public has little awareness of the challenges that they face in life after combat. This suggests an urgent need to supplement existing support and raise consciousness at a grassroots level. Emotional trauma is at epidemic proportions. From 2002 22012 103,000 103,972 cases of posttraumatic stress were reported. According to a report from the department of Veterans Affairs an average of 22 American Veterans continue to take their lives every day. Physical injuries often compound the emotional damage. In the same time span, 100,000 17 battle injury amputations were performed. Beyond the personal struggles, loss of limb and or physical disfiguration places tremendous stress on veterans families. Loved ones also often must take on the role of caregivers and posttraumatic stress can affect the entire family. For our wounded, maintaining access to Ongoing Health care support systems is a daunting task. Reentering society and finding employment is especially difficult. More than half of all veterans report feeling disconnected. From their communities. Their sense of disconnect is a solvable problem. Willingness to help and raising awareness will help where help is needed within individual communities. They are important first steps. Local citizens in every Community Need to connect with these veterans and their families to provide support, however possible. As citizens who benefit from what they do for us. It is our duty, very simply, if every neighborhood in every community in every town and city and every state soft out their local veterans and offer their hand, we would greatly reduce the problem and most likely have the problem solved. It is a dangerous and unpredictable world. We need to keep our military strong and ready to face the evils of this world that would seek to destroy our way of life. They are our freedom providers. And they and their families need our help. As we all know, we all too often take our freedom for granted. I recently returned from my third trip to korea performing for our troops. And a third visit to the dnc. A strange very strange, and sad place. This time, while there is something that while there while there, something happened that did not happen on my previous trips. As we came out of the building, two north korean guards came right up to the borders at to take pictures of our group. I was two feet away and could look directly into the eyes of these guards. Haunting and very sad eyes. They know nothing but worship of the Supreme Leader and are slaves to their master. Perhaps, there is no place on earth where one can feel a palpable difference between freedom and slavery more than standing on the border between north and south korea. The North Koreans know nothing. Nothing. Of freedom. For three generations, they have been oppressed by a dictatorship and indoctrinated by a regime that has enslaved them and sealed them off from the rest of the world. The North Koreans have a military that is there to suppress them. And take their freedoms away. But, with the United States by their side, like all of us here in the u. S. , the South Koreans have a military that its very purpose is to protect their freedoms and to provide life, liberty, and the ability for every man, woman, and child to pursue their happiness. Education is the key to making sure our generation and future generations know the high cost of freedom. And what our military men and women sacrifice to and or to and orendure. Not everyone in this world gets to live like we do. Is there any doubt that there are evil forces in this world that given the opportunity would do anything in their power to destroy what we as americans and all western nations have grown so accustomed to . There are only two possibility possible outcomes. Tyranny or freedom. Our defenders today stand as guardians of all that we hold dear against another evil. It punishes anyone who does not submit to their twisted view of the world. On october 22, 19 62, addressing the Nuclear Threat posed by the soviet union and the u. S. Response to missiles in cuba, president john f. Kennedy said that happened we have chosen at the present is full of hazards. As all has our paths are. But it is the one that is most consistent with our character and encourage as a nation and our commitments around the world. The cost of freedom is always high. And americans have always paid. And one path that we shall never choose is the path of surrender or submission. Today, we face many threats to peace and security of the world. Full of hazards of the present and we are thankful to have american men and women who are willing to do the dangerous work necessary to ensure that we remain free and secure. Still, with the disconnect between the average american and its military, i believe education educating our citizens and our youth as to what our military men and women indoor in combat with long deployments away from friends and family is in order so that we better understand why it is critically important to support them and take care of them. This is why i want to talk you today about the importance of the medal of honor museum. The effort to build a National Museum in mount pleasant, South Carolina. In retirement, general livingston, a busy man. Among other things, he is a member of the board of directors of the medal of honor museum foundation. He along with several other medal of honor recipients comprise the Steering Committee for the museum which will review all museum exhibits and programs to ensure they are consistent with the mission of the congressional medal of Honor Society. The society is the brotherhood of the 79 living medal of honor recipients. Education can come in many forms. One way is through memorials and museums where the stories of those who served have a permanent place to have their voices heard. Since the first medal of honor was awarded by president Abraham Lincoln on march 25, 1863, more than 25 million men and women have served during our nations conflicts. Fewer than 3500 of them, less than. 2 , have received the medal of honor. Those who wear the medal represents americas bravest and best. All who have served and sacrificed in defense of our nation. Their stories are lessons for us all. In how to live our lives with honor, integrity, and character. My own history with the medal of Honor Society and Foundation Goes back to 2000 22007. I have been humbled and blessed to serve on the Advisory Group and now at the invitation of general livingston, on the board of directors as a National Spokesperson for the middle of honor museum efforts. It has been my privilege and great honor to get to know many of the recipients of the medal of honor personally and to hear their stories here it to be among americas bravest and listen to them and interact with them has been a blessing and a true education. They have shown me a quiet strength and modesty. And they all say, that they where the medal of honor not for themselves, but for all those who fought so bravely alongside them and did not make it home. That we would remember them and their sacrifice. More than 18 646 of the medals awarded since 1863, has been presented posthumously. But from the civil war until world war ii, of the 2418 medals awarded, just 3 , 83, were awarded posthumously. From world war ii to the present, or than 60 of the medals have been awarded posthumously. 62. 9 in the vietnam war and 43. 7 in the wars in iraq and afghanistan. Within the last few decades, the Defense Department has reviewed records of a number of potential medal of honor recipients who have been passed over in the past because of their race religion, or ethnicity. As a result of these reviews, a number of africanamerican hispanic and jewish servicemen have received longoverdue recognition as medal of honor recipients. They hail from every walk, every station in life. They reflect the ethnic, cultural economic, religious and educational diversity that is a hallmark of the american experience. All 50 states, the district of columbia, puerto rico, guam and more than half a dozen other nations are represented. More than 20 of the recipients were born outside of the United States. As i mentioned, there are 79 living recipients. Fewer than at any time since the civil war when the medal was first awarded. The oldest recipient, a world war ii veteran, is 94. The youngest, a veteran of the war in afghanistan is 25. Their average age is 71 years old. The medal of honor is the nations highest award for valor in combat. It is the only military medal that is worn around the neck. Its recipients are the only individuals from the that the president salutes as a matter of custom. It is awarded by the president in the name of congress to a member of the armed forces who distinguishes himself conspicuously by gallantry by risking his life above and beyond the call of duty. While engaged in action against the United States. The medal of honor museum is in the works. Why question mark to preserve why . To preserve the stories of the medal of honor recipients, presenting them to a new generation sorely in need of understanding. The future site of the museum is located at patriots point in mount pleasant, South Carolina. On the Eastern Shore of Charleston Harbor directly across from the u. S. As your cap. Throughout the museum, visitors will have multiple opportunities to meet and interact and learn from thise recipients through film, videos, and dynamic elements and indepth interviews. Two galleries will be devoted to the congressional medal of honor Character Development to educate our American Youth and citizenry. As one teacher recently commented on the Character Development program, saying our children want to change the world on so many levels. The curriculum offers them the tools and opportunity to do just that, now and in the future. Education is the key to helping the youth of america understand and be inspired by the valor and selfless acts of courage that those who earn the medal have so valid you have so valiantly portrayed in the most harrowing of circumstances. I am honored to serve on the board of directors and as National Spokesperson for this worthy and important project. I encourage you to seek out more information by going to the medal of honor museum website. And for the gary finneys foundations efforts, you can learn more about the Gary Sinise Foundation at geary sinise foundation. Org. James michener in his book, the bridges of tokyo ray, writes movingly of the heroes that fought in the korean combat. In the books final scene and admiral stands on the bridge of his carrier waiting for pilots that he knows will never return from their mission. As he waits, he asks in the silent darkness, where did we get such men . Today as i stand in the presence of general livingston and all of our veterans here today, i asked again where do we find such men and women who are willing to go into harms way to keep us free . The answer is very simple. We find them where we have always found them, in our villages and towns, on our city streets, and in our shops and in our farms. Americas families defend us all. One generation fighting for americas future. One generation inspires the next so that again Young American will rise out of the communities and dear to stand and face those who would do us harm and say boldly and with conviction not on my watch. And to those that stand guard waiting to note that there is a grateful nation standing behind them and who may question, from time to time, whether their service will go unnoticed or who would ask, will our sacrifices the sacrifices of our fallen our wounded, our military families before gotten . Be forgot . Ten . And i say, and i encourage all of my fellow americans, to say not on my watch. Thank you. [applause] thank you very much. Each generation of war has prompted lessons learned. Ptsd awareness out of world war ii and korea. And separating truth of support from were support coming out of the it now. What you think we should learn from the veterans of the wars in iraq and afghanistan . There is much to learn. I will say that i have Vietnam Veterans in my family so i am very motivated by what i learned from the veterans in my family years ago in the 1970s and 1980s when they came home from work. A big catalyst for me today in supporting our iraq and afghanistan veterans and trying to ensure that they have the services that they need, and they are shown the appreciation that they deserve are from what happened to our Vietnam Veterans and the shocking reality of the shameful way that they were treated when they came home from work and the services that they needed that they did not get. We have much to learn. As i said, there is a major epidemic within the military community. Of those suffering from ptsd. Thankfully, there are a lot of Services Within the v. A. That are being provided but also within the military nonprofit support space. I think part of my feeling about this is that with the thousands of military charities that there are out there, the military nonprofits that are filling these gaps and trying to provide services. Like service dogs, for example these dogs are very important to mental health. Thankfully, there are those military nonprofits. We all know the challenges that the v. A. Has some wonderful people working within the v. A. But it is a challenged environment for our veterans. Thankfully, there are these military nonprofits that are trying to address needs on multiple fronts. The Tax Organization is here today. Bonnie carol who is providing a Great Service to the families of our fallen. There is a posttraumatic stress involved there. For our iraq and afghanistan families. There are services out there that are providing and i encourage anyone who is seeking service or seeking help from the iraq and Afghanistan Community to continue passing on the information of where these services are provided. There is a lot to learn from those who served in past wars and certainly those who are serving now. We can never do enough for those who are serving our nation. There is a lot more to be done and we can always try to do a little bit more. With nearly a decade of war winding down, how do you see the mission of your Foundation Changing as fewer and fewer combat veterans come out of the armed forces and with the worst winding down it you worry that it is going to become more difficult to get the American People and the political system to appreciate and properly serve the veterans . It already is more difficult. Our Service Members continue to be deployed in harms way and yet they are ignored on the front pages. The residual affects of these wars will last for decades. They continue to last from previous wars. We still have challenging environments within the veteran community from all wars. I have never been to combat. I know that many of our veterans here have. It never leaves you. It never goes away. You can certainly move beyond it. The more we can keep consciousness and keep people aware of what is happening within our military community the more services will continue to be provided. This is where the challenge becomes greatest as we do draw down, as we do leave the battle space and leave the front pages. The residual effects of these wars will last for decades and we need these services to be provided continually. That is where someone like me can come in and be useful. I can talk at the press club and express myself and get a public platform around the country to try and keep this awareness up. And help as many military charities as i possibly can because the need is enormous. There are a lot of unmet needs out there and we will continue to face these challenges. Keeping awareness up his important and primary. Thank you for having me here today. What you can do is help keep this in the consciousness of the American People. We are tired of war. We have been network work for 14 years and yet our military continues to serve and continue to have challenges. Our military hospitals continue to serve those who have been injured years ago. I know people who have been going through rehabilitation for years. And will continue to do that. One of our families here louise and claudia are here today. We are to be doing a homebuilding project for them at the hot they are at the hospital every day. God bless you. We can never do enough for you and what you are done leastlouis. [applause] this question are for those not for milieu, please tell us why you took on the leadership of this noble cause. After 9 11, you talked about getting involved. Did you really have this passion even years before while growing up . Talk about your own evolution as to how you got to today. It begins with the family members. It begins with the family members on my side of the family, world war i veteran, my grandfather served driving an ambulance in france on the front lines. I had two uncles in world war ii. My dad served in the navy. On my wifes side of the family her two parade brothers served in vietnam. It is really the vietnam side of the family that really opened my eyes in the late 1970s. By the time i was old enough to absorb things as a young teenager, the family members on my side of the family were well beyond their service. I dont remember my grandfather ever talking about world war i. I dont remember my uncle talking about world war ii until i started to do a lot of this work and then i would take him everywhere i went to get him talking. He would spend memorial day here with me at the concert every year. He unfortunately passed away at 90 years old this last october. As did my brotherinlaw, jack who was a combat medic in vietnam and stayed in the army for 22 years. I learned so much from him and the veterans, and my wifes two brothers. They really got me thinking. I got involved with Vietnam Veterans groups in the 1980s in the chicago area. 10 years later, i had an opportunity to audition and play a vietnam veteran enforce compared really wanted to do that. Having had veterans in my family and being involved with Vietnam Veterans in the chicago area. Luckily, i got the part and that led me to an association with the disabled American Veterans association. That relationship goes back 20 years. After september 11, when we were attacked, it felt like this was where i could employ my service in helping those who serve. I volunteered for the uso and started visiting our troops. This is decades old. It all came together four years ago when i created the Gary Sinise Foundation and watched it right here at the press club. My objective here is to have this foundation be here long after i am gone serving and honoring the needs of our military and veteran community. As i said, we cannot ever do enough for our freedom providers. This is a dangerous 21st century. We will be facing a lot of dangerous and the military will be called upon many times in the coming decades. The Washington Post recently ran a story headlined that military tributes military tributes at baseball games honors or gestures . How would you answer that question and also talk about the change between vietnam and today and the appreciation and recognition that veterans received. What has driven that change . I cant respond to the baseball game thing. Or the sports thing. I really dont know anything about that. I think we learn some hard lessons from vietnam. General livingston stated stayed in the military for 33 years. For my brotherinlaw jack who stayed in the military for 22 years after vietnam, it was a good place for him to be. For my other brotherinlaw, who was a helicopter pilot in vietnam, he got out after his tour. It was very challenging for him. To try to blend in and forget to pretend he was not a vietnam veteran. At that time, so many who had been to vietnam had to do. It was a challenging time and our nation treated our veterans in a shameful manner. It was a difficult time for our country and a difficult time for our veterans. It was a hard time for the army, i know. A very difficult time for our marines. We learn the reason you see over 40,000 military nonprofits out there today and there are over 40,000 that have popped up in the last 14 years. One of the reasons is because people are aware of what happened in the late 1960s and early 1970s when our Vietnam Veterans were treated poorly. Like me, many of them wanted to dive in and prevent that from happening to our active duty Service Members in iraq and afghanistan. Education, is such a critically important part of letting our young people understand why it is important to support this. 1 of our population that serves in the military. It is a very very small percentage. A lot of people if they dont have a personal connection like i do to someone serving in the military, there is a disconnect. A serious disconnect between the average american citizen and its military him him himin the timer meaning, i wanted to ask you. You mentioned that you can use your celebrity status to promote these causes. You keep working on that end of your career as well and youve got a new series upcoming. Could you tell us about this new tv series you are beginning . Gary oh yeah, oh yeah, the job. Csi new york went off the air in february of 2013. Since then, i have been pouring all my energy into the military support and veterans report foundation. Traveling around the country and the world raising awareness and that kind of thing. I was approached by cbs about doing a pilot for a new Spinoff Series of the show criminal minds. We shot the pilot and it was an episode of the criminal minds series when they introduce a new team of the International Division of the fbi. And the Behavioral Analysis unit. They picked us up. I am going back to work july 27, we start shooting in california. We will explore the International Division as i said. Every week we will be in a new country chasing bad guys and trying to protect americans. [applause] president hughes in preparation for this role, you are doing some work out here as well. Gary yes. Tomorrow, im actually going out to the fbi and i will be visiting and getting some briefings, meeting some people doing some research for the part. I get to do that tomorrow and this will be my first time there. I am very much looking forward to it. One of our technical advisors is an fbi guy who moonlights as a writer. President hughes please join me in giving a round of applause to our speaker today. [applause] gary thank you for having me. President hughes i would also like to think the press club staff, including its Journalism Institute and Broadcast Center for organizing todays event. If you would like a copy of todays program or to learn more about the National Press club, again you can go to our website press. Org. I want to thank all the Service Organizations that have joined us today and made it extra special. We at the National Press club are grateful for all of the work that you do. Thank you so much. We are adjourned. [applause]
comparemela.com © 2020. All Rights Reserved.