WASHINGTON – First lady Michelle Obama predicted Monday that successful efforts to reduce homelessness among veterans will continue under the new administration.
As she began to speak at the White House, a member of the audience shouted, “Run for president!”
She smiled, and teasingly replied, “Quiet, you!”
She addressed the election results by nodding to the president’s comments about national unity, saying she “deeply felt the truth” in his words.
“When it comes to supporting our American heroes, none of that (politics) matters, because this is something we can all agree on,” the first lady said. “Our love, our gratitude, our admiration for our men and women in uniform, all that is bigger than any one party or any one election.”
Since its launch in 2011, Joining Forces, Michelle Obama’s veterans initiative, has led to the hiring or training of more than 1.5 million veterans and military spouses.
The Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, a related program that launched in 2014, has effectively ended veteran homelessness in Connecticut, Virginia and 35 cities and counties across the country, nearly cutting the veteran homeless rate in half, according to the White House.
