WASHINGTON — Today, VA Secretary Robert Wilkie issued the following statement on  President Trump’s signing of the Executive Order, “Supporting the Transition of Active Duty Service Members and Military Veterans into the Merchant Marine:”

“This executive order means a lot to me personally because my grandfather was a mariner.

“This represents a true win-win for our nation’s Veterans and for national security.

“By fast-tracking the transition into the Merchant Marine of trained and credentialed service members, President Trump is meeting an important national security need while providing meaningful, well-paying jobs to our nation’s heroes.

“This is another example of out-of-the-box thinking by this President benefiting our nation’s Veterans.”

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Reporters and media outlets with questions or comments should contact the Office of Media Relations at vapublicaffairs@va.gov

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