REDMOND, OR -- Congressman Greg Walden was in Central Oregon, this weekend. He attended a barbecue honoring veterans at the Redmond VFW hall, on Saturday. KBND News asked the Republican about the protest in Bend and calls for him to hold a local town hall, "This is what? My eighth or ninth trip to Deschutes County, this year; I was just down in Medford and Grants Pass and, you know, I’m around the district all the time. And I take it seriously. I work hard for the people of this district. These are the same people that have been protesting in my offices, shutting down our ability to do our work, frequently, since literally the day after the election." Walden says groups like "Indivisible Bend" never got over the last election, and he believes he's working hard to represent District Two.
The Oregon Republican attended Saturday's event because, he says, respecting veterans should be a way of life, "We don't have our freedom, we don't have our way of life, if it weren't for our veterans, the men and women who've worn our nation's uniform, who gave us our freedom and protect us today in far off places and we need to show our respect and support for them." He tells KBND News he's supported every VA bill and tries to help veterans every chance he gets, "More than half of our annual casework is helping individual veterans, we've had over 600 cases in the last 12 months, we've devoted our time and effort to making sure veterans get what they were promised." Walden adds, "We've done all kinds of work to expand access for veterans to health care to make sure that they get their benefits, and continue to."
Diane Kenyon says Walden has done a lot for veterans, but there will always be a need. Her husband is a veteran who's been in a recent accident, and she said Saturday that dealing with the VA process can be daunting, "There needs to be more done for the vets. There's not enough out there. The elected officials need to start stepping up and helping out the people that served." Korean conflict Veteran Robert Huntington, Sr. appreciates Walden's efforts to support vets, "He was back when I was in the honor flight in June, He was at the World war II memorial, presented flags that had flown over the capitol, to all the 25 veterans, which was great."
