My name is Rob Diamond, and I'm the chairman of Organizing for America's Vets and Military Families Outreach council, as well as a former member of the Veterans for Obama campaign team. I'm a graduate of the Naval Academy and a former naval officer who served 7 years on active duty, including serving in Iraq in 2004.

Today is Veterans Day, and this morning President Obama sent a special message of thanks to veterans who are part of Organizing for America, thanking those you who have served and continue to serve:

Friend --

Today, on Veteran's Day, my message to you is simple: Thank you. Thank you for your selfless service, for your valor, and your strength of purpose that make all of us proud to be Americans.

Today, Americans will pause amidst a great conversation about the future of our nation to take a moment and recognize your service to our democracy -- a service that guarantees us all the liberty to engage freely in that conversation, no matter what our views may be.

We know that we owe you a debt which cannot be repaid. But we can and will fulfill our nation's promise to stand by you and your loved ones. That is why we've worked hard for better care for our veterans, and why we provided the largest increase in Veterans Administration funding in history.

Today, we honor those Americans past and present who've served on battlefields from Lexington to Antietam, Normandy to Manila, Inchon to Khe Sanh, Ramadi to Kandahar. You have defended our freedom on land, and at sea, and in the air.

You reflect the diversity that makes this America. You share a patriotism beyond question. And you share the same unflinching courage, selfless compassion, and uncommon camaraderie that -- when faced with the tragedy of a despicable and heartbreaking attack last Thursday -- the soldiers and civilians of Ft. Hood humbly revealed to the world.

You and your loved ones are the patriotic men and women we honor today, Veterans Day. And you are the men and women we shall honor every day, in times of war and times of peace, so long as our nation endures.

Thank you.

President Barack Obama

As a former service member, I understand the importance of taking care of our veterans and their loved ones. We worked hard to elect a President and a Congress who would make caring for veterans and military families a priority -- and while we have much more work to do, President Obama's accomplishments on behalf of veterans and military families thus far are something we should all be proud of.

In just ten short months, President Obama has:

• Requested $15 billion in increased funding for the Veterans Administration over 30 years -- the largest increase in history
• Signed into law the "VA Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act" which will provide the VA with advance funding-the #1 legislative priority of almost every Veterans Service Organization
• Provided $1.4 billion in additional funding to the VA under the "American  Recovery and Reinvestment Act" that is going directly to improving VA hospitals and clinics around the nation
• Expanded VA-healthcare enrollment opportunities for more than 250,000 previously excluded Veterans, and continue to raise this number towards a goal of 500,000.
• Launched a major Veterans Employment Initiative that is designed to make the federal government into the model employer of America's veterans.

I am humbled to be one of millions of courageous Americans who have dedicated their lives to serving and protecting our democracy. While there is much left to be done, under President Obama's leadership we have made historic progress towards fulfilling our commitment these patriotic men and women.

I hope you will take a moment today stand with those who served our nation by getting involved with one of the following organizations: USO, Fisher House, and the Bob Woodruff Foundation.