First and foremost, we recognize and honor the anniversary of teh September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
We will never forget the thousands of people who died that day. We are forever indebted to the heroes who responded at our nation’s time of need and in the days and months and years that followed.
The Department of Defense has a remarkable webpage honoring the memories of those who died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in Shanksville, PA.
News Of the Week
Now onto some headlines from this week (September 8, 2024 – September 14, 2024):
1. Defense Secretary Austin tells Congress 6-month funding stopgap would be ‘devastating to our readiness’ (ABC News; Sept 9, 2024). In his letter to bipartisan committee chairs on government funding, Austin urged lawmakers to avoid a six-month stopgap funding measure, calling a regular funding bill for the Pentagon “the single most important thing that Congress can do to ensure U.S. national security.”
2. Voting by mail? Election workers are worried about issues at the Postal Service (The 19th; Sept 12, 2024). Top election officials this week sounded the alarm about ongoing delays within America’s mail delivery system and the potential effect on mail-in voting in the upcoming presidential election, a warning that comes as former President Donald Trump continues to sow distrust about how some of those ballots will be counted.
3. Pentagon to unveil new programs to boost quality of life for troops (Military Times; Sept 13, 2024). The challenge of troop retention continues.
The Pentagon is branding the trip around “Taking Care of Our People,” the secretary’s plan to solve issues such as child care and low pay for service members. Austin issued another memo outlining the effort Friday morning.
The memo included a list of seven new steps to aid service members, from making it easier for military families to move to offering more military spouses money to pursue their own careers. In sum, the Pentagon hopes these ideas will help ease pressing challenges for personnel, from housing quality to child care.
Secure Families Initiative is here for you and your voting needs
1. This week! Come attend our online training on Politics Do’s and Don’ts for Military Loved Ones Thursday September 19, 2024 at 12pm ET. More info and RSVP here.
2. Next week! We have an online training on Talking to Friends and Family About Voting Monday, September 23, 2024 at 12pm ET. More info and RSVP here.
3. If you have had positive, negative, or even no experience contacting a Voting Assistance Officer as a military voter, we want to hear from you!
Option 1: We have a short 5 minute survey (psst! it might even just take you 2 minutes!) that asks simply: have you met a VAO, how did it go?
Option 2: If you have a bit more time and want to share more details on reaching out and talking to your VAO, then this survey is for you it has step-by-step instructions and a sample script for you to use.
4. If you’ve been confused about all the military voting acronyms, we have just the tool for you!
Election deadlines are fast approaching. Remember to:
Confirm your voter registration Make a voting plan Request your absentee ballot (if you need one) Find your polling location and early voting options (if you vote in person) Send this reminder to 3 friends
Find everything you need to complete your voting check list and additional resources for military-connected voters at SecureFamiliesInitiative.org/Vote.