McCaskill: Families of POWs/MIAs deserve honesty, truth

(From Sen. Claire McCaskill)

Every Veterans Day, I pay tribute to those who have fought to provide us with the security and freedoms that we all too often take for granted. As a United States Senator, I've also tried to use the holiday to remind myself that honoring our troops requires actions, not just words. That's why I'm leading a charge to ensure our government is being honest with the families of those who are POW or MIA.

My investigation into the Pentagon's POW/MIA recovery efforts revealed an unacceptable level of disarray - with a host of problems plaguing the program tasked with finding, identifying, and returning the remains of American personnel. I led a Senate hearing in which I grilled Pentagon officials about the lack of oversight and organizational structure within the program that has led to the mismanagement of recovery efforts.

Now we're seeing troubling reports suggesting that phony "arrival" ceremonies were being staged for families, using military props and remains that have sometimes actually been returned to the U.S. months prior, while the military claimed that the remains had just arrived from overseas.

These new revelations are alarming, and represent more evidence that these recovery efforts are suffering from systemic problems and a lack of coordinated leadership.

Families of POW/MIA Americans deserve honesty and forthright answers, but instead, they're often getting false hope and fake ceremonies. That's why I've asked the Pentagon to provide me with detailed information on how it plans to correct the mismanagement at all levels and have begun working with my Republican colleagues to find possible legislative solutions. I've also written to the Secretary of Defense to demand answers about the phony arrival ceremonies.

We can and must do better.

It's my hope that by next Veterans Day we'll have instituted some desperately needed reforms, and will be able to assure American families that efforts to recover their loved ones are being made with the competence and integrity that honor their sacrifice.