In Tuba City, Gallego says feds are failing Navajo veterans
Courtesy | U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego
U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego speaks during a community conversation with Native veterans in Tuba City June 27.
TUBA CITY
U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego told military veterans here that the federal government is failing Navajo veterans, warning that a Department of Veterans Affairs restructuring and a Republican-backed bill threaten to cut benefits and pull doctors away from the rural communities that need them most.
Gallego, an Arizona Democrat and combat Marine veteran who joined the Senate in 2025 after a decade in the U.S. House, spent more than an hour fielding questions from veterans, Gold Star families, tribal officials and county leaders.
The event – a community conversation with Native veterans – coincided with Tuba City’s recent designation as an official Purple Heart community.
The event drew veterans and families from the Four Corners region.
State Sen. Theresa Hatathlie, who hosted the gathering, said in an interview the visit was not Gallego’s first to Tuba City and praised him for repeatedly making time to meet with the community and its veterans.
To read the full article, please see the July 2, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
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