Path to Recovery

Brianna Keilar is the anchor of CNN Right Now. The show airs weekdays at 1:00 p.m. She is also the author of Home Front, a column that focuses on military families in hopes of bridging the military-civilian divide. Previously, Keilar was CNN's senior Washington correspondent, responsible for covering important stories on politics, policy and breaking news in Washington. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Keilar served as the lead reporter covering Hillary Clinton and the Democratic field. She also serves as the network's primary fill-in anchor for The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.Previously, Keilar served as senior White House correspondent for CNN, reporting on the Obama administration from the nation's capital and from around the world. In this post she covered several key stories for the network from the government shutdown to Obamacare, for which she earned a 2014 Aldo Beckman Memorial Award from the White House Correspondents' Association. In addition, during America's Choice 2012 coverage, Keilar reported on President Obama's campaign, the Democratic National Convention, and contributed to the network's Emmy Award-winning election night coverage.Prior to covering the White House, Keilar served as a congressional correspondent, responsible for covering the activities of both the U.S. House and Senate. For her fall 2008 coverage of the $700 billion bank bailout, she was awarded the National Press Foundation's Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress.Prior to covering Congress, Keilar served as a general assignment correspondent for the network, reporting on a wide-range of stories, including the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre, where she was the first CNN correspondent on the ground.Keilar first joined the network in 2006 as a correspondent for CNN Newsource, where she provided breaking news coverage and reported from the nation's capital for approximately 800 CNN Newsource partner stations. She joined Newsource from CBS News where she served as an anchor, reporter and producer for a CBS newscast that aired on mtvU, MTV's college network. She was also a fill-in anchor on CBS News' overnight newscast, Up to the Minute, and a freelance reporter for CBS Evening News Weekend Edition.Prior to working for CBS, Keilar was a general assignment reporter in Yakima, Wash., for the CNN and CBS affiliate, KIMA-TV. During that same time, she also worked in radio as a morning show personality and weekend news reader. Keilar began her journalism career as a production assistant and intern at KTVU-TV, a CNN and FOX affiliate in San Francisco.Keilar graduated Phi Beta Kappa with bachelor's degrees in mass communications and psychology from the University of California, Berkeley.

Brianna Keilar is the anchor of CNN Right Now. The show airs weekdays at 1:00 p.m. She is also the author of Home Front, a column that focuses on military families in hopes of bridging the military-civilian divide. Previously, Keilar was CNN's senior Washington correspondent, responsible for covering important stories on politics, policy and breaking news in Washington. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Keilar served as the lead reporter covering Hillary Clinton and the Democratic field. She also serves as the network's primary fill-in anchor for The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.Previously, Keilar served as senior White House correspondent for CNN, reporting on the Obama administration from the nation's capital and from around the world. In this post she covered several key stories for the network from the government shutdown to Obamacare, for which she earned a 2014 Aldo Beckman Memorial Award from the White House Correspondents' Association. In addition, during America's Choice 2012 coverage, Keilar reported on President Obama's campaign, the Democratic National Convention, and contributed to the network's Emmy Award-winning election night coverage.Prior to covering the White House, Keilar served as a congressional correspondent, responsible for covering the activities of both the U.S. House and Senate. For her fall 2008 coverage of the $700 billion bank bailout, she was awarded the National Press Foundation's Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress. Prior to covering Congress, Keilar served as a general assignment correspondent for the network, reporting on a wide-range of stories, including the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre, where she was the first CNN correspondent on the ground.Keilar first joined the network in 2006 as a correspondent for CNN Newsource, where she provided breaking news coverage and reported from the nation's capital for approximately 800 CNN Newsource partner stations. She joined Newsource from CBS News where she served as an anchor, reporter and producer for a CBS newscast that aired on mtvU, MTV's college network. She was also a fill-in anchor on CBS News' overnight newscast, Up to the Minute, and a freelance reporter for CBS Evening News Weekend Edition.Prior to working for CBS, Keilar was a general assignment reporter in Yakima, Wash., for the CNN and CBS affiliate, KIMA-TV. During that same time, she also worked in radio as a morning show personality and weekend news reader. Keilar began her journalism career as a production assistant and intern at KTVU-TV, a CNN and FOX affiliate in San Francisco.Keilar graduated Phi Beta Kappa with bachelor's degrees in mass communications and psychology from the University of California, Berkeley.

Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael A. Grinston was sworn in as the 16th Sergeant Major of the Army on Aug. 9, 2019. Grinston has held every enlisted leadership position in artillery, ranging from cannon crewmember to command sergeant major.As the sergeant major of the Army, Grinston is the Army chief of staff's personal adviser on matters affecting the enlisted force. He devotes the majority of his time traveling throughout the Army to observe training and interact with Soldiers and their Families. He sits on a variety of councils and boards that make decisions affecting enlisted Soldiers and their Families and routinely invited to testify before Congress. Grinston is the public face of the U.S. Army's Noncommissioned Officer Corps, representing the NCO Corps to the American people in the media and through business and community engagements.Grinston is a native of Jasper, Alabama, and enlisted in the Army in October 1987. He attended Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training as an artilleryman at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Grinston’s deployments include Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield, Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn, Inherent Resolve, Enduring Freedom, and Kosovo. As the 1st Infantry Division command sergeant major, Grinston served as the senior enlisted leader for the Army’s first deployment of a division headquarters in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. He also served as the I Corps command sergeant major, and as the command sergeant major for U.S. Army Forces Command. Grinston’s military education includes all levels of the Noncommissioned Officer Education System. He is a graduate of Ranger School, Airborne School, Drill Sergeant School, Air Assault School, How the Army Runs Course, the Equal Opportunity Leaders Course and the Keystone Course. Grinston holds a Bachelors of Arts in Business Administration from the University of Maryland University College. His awards and decorations include the Army Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (2nd award), Bronze Star Medal with Valor (2nd award), the Bronze Star medal (3rd award). He has earned the Ranger tab, Master Parachutist badge, Air Assault badge, Drill Sergeant Identification badge, and the Combat Action Badge.Grinston is married and has two children.

Senator Tim Kaine was elected to the Senate in 2012 and serves on the Armed Services; Budget; Foreign Relations; and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committees. Tim has made boosting job opportunities for everyone a top priority. As co-chair of the bipartisan Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus, Tim focuses on expanding access to job-training programs to ensure that students of all ages are prepared with the skills they need for the jobs of the modern economy. Tim has also led successful efforts in the Senate to reduce unemployment for military families and veterans.As a Senator from one of the states most closely connected to the military and the father of a Marine, Tim is focused on crafting smart defense strategy and reducing the risk of unnecessary war. He works to ensure that the military has the resources it needs to keep the country safe andthat servicemembers and veterans receive the benefits and care they have earned. He has also been the leading voice against Presidents starting wars without a vote by Congress.Tim believes that health care is a right, not something reserved just for those who can afford it, and has consistently pushed for reforms to expand access to quality care. This includes legislation to give Americans more options for affordable health insurance and to combat the opioid abuse epidemic.Tim grew up working in his father’s ironworking shop in Kansas City. His parents taught him the value of hard work and showed him how small businesses and technical skills strengthen this country every day. After graduating from the University of Missouri, he started his public service career by running a technical school founded by Jesuit missionaries in Honduras. He trained teenagers to become carpenters and welders, equipping them with skills to lift up themselves and their communities.He was first elected to office in 1994, serving as a city councilmember and then Mayor of Richmond. He became Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 2002 and was inaugurated as Virginia’s 70th Governor in 2006. He is married to Anne Holton, who served as Virginia Secretary of Education from 2014 until 2016 and as the Interim President of George Mason University from 2019 until 2020; she now teaches education policy at GMU. They both revel in the adventures of their three grown children and live in the same Northside Richmond neighborhood where they moved as newlyweds more than 30 years ago.

Early Life: Thom was born into a working-class family with his father and mother and five siblings. During his childhood, his family was frequently forced to relocate depending on where his parents could find work. After graduating from high school, Thom was unable to afford college, so he took a job as a warehouse records clerk earning minimum wage. He knows firsthand how difficult it is to raise a family while attending school at night, struggling to make ends meet.Professional Career:Through hard work and dedication, Thom quickly moved up the corporate ladder, earning his degree at 36 and becoming a top-level executive at PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM. Thom’s 29-year private sector career in technology and management consulting provided him with a deep understanding of policy-making and the management of complex organizations.Public Service:Fueled by a desire to make a difference in his local community, Thom’s involvement in public service began by serving as the PTA president of his daughter’s high school and as a member of the Town of Cornelius Board of Commissioners. In 2006, he was elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives and was selected by his peers to serve as Speaker of the House from 2011 to 2014. As Speaker, Thom played an instrumental role in enacting job-creating policies and reforming North Carolina’s tax and regulatory codes. Thom was elected as U.S. Senator in 2014 and he has focused on pragmatic solutions and delivering results for North Carolina.Family Life:Thom lives with his wife Susan in Huntersville, North Carolina, and they are the proud parents of two grown children and two granddaughters.

Originally sworn in on January 5, 2011, Richard Blumenthal is serving his second term as a United States Senator from the State of Connecticut.Senator Blumenthal served an unprecedented five terms as Connecticut’s Attorney General, fighting for people against large and powerful special interests. His aggressive law enforcement for consumer protection, environmental stewardship, labor rights, and personal privacy has helped reshape the role of state attorneys general nationwide, and resulted in the recovery of hundreds of millions of dollars for Connecticut taxpayers and consumers each year.A key player in the national fight against Big Tobacco, he helped bring an end to deceptive marketing aimed at children – a victory significantly lowering youth smoking rates, and compelling a multi-billion dollar settlement for Connecticut taxpayers. He also helped lead a coalition of all 50 states that culminated in historic agreements with social networking sites to better protect children from Internet predators.As Attorney General, he advocated for reforms in the health insurance industry to assure critical health care coverage and lower pharmaceutical drug prices. He has worked relentlessly to eradicate corruption in state government and make state contracting accountable, fair, honest, and transparent.His vigorous investigation and legal action against insurance industry abuses has successfully forced financial restitution and reform, compelled greater disclosure by insurers and brokers to consumers, and recovered millions of dollars for the state, municipalities, and individuals. He has successfully fought unfair utility rate charges, air pollution causing acid rain, general environmental wrongdoing, as well as a wide array of consumer scams and frauds.Senator Blumenthal has personally argued several major cases in court, including his successful effort to uphold the Connecticut sex offender registry in the Supreme Court. He has fought and sued the federal government for failing to follow or enforce environmental laws and energy statutes, as well as imposing multimillion dollar unfunded mandates on local taxpayers under the No Child Left Behind Act.From 1977 to 1981, Senator Blumenthal served as a U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, prosecuting drug trafficking, organized and white collar crime, civil rights violations, consumer fraud, and environmental pollution. He served in the Connecticut House of Representatives from 1984 to 1987, and the Connecticut State Senate from 1987 to 1990. As a volunteer attorney for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Senator Blumenthal saved the life of an innocent, wrongly convicted death row inmate who came within hours of execution.Prior to his position as U.S. Attorney, Senator Blumenthal also served as Administrative Assistant to U.S. Senator Abraham A. Ribicoff, aide to former U.S. Senator Daniel P. Moynihan when Moynihan was Assistant to the President of the United States, and law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun.Senator Blumenthal graduated from Harvard College (Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude), and Yale Law School, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Yale Law Journal. From 1970 to 1976 he served in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, and was honorably discharged with the rank of Sergeant.Senator Blumenthal lives in Connecticut with his wife, Cynthia, and their four children.

Panel:Impact on Women: Female Service Members & Military SpousesLt. Gen. Jody J. Daniels assumed the role of Chief of Army Reserve and Commanding General, U.S. Army Reserve Command, on July 28, 2020.Daniels most recently served as the Commanding General of the 88th Readiness Division headquartered at Fort Snelling, Minn., and Fort McCoy, Wis. She has more than 36 years of active and reserve military service.Her other recent assignments include Chief of Staff, U.S. Army Forces Command; Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff Intelligence, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-2; Deputy Director and Director, Intelligence and Knowledge Development Directorate for U.S. Africa Command, Stuttgart, Germany; dual-hatted as the Commanding General, 87th Army Reserve Support Command (East), Birmingham, Ala., and Deputy Commanding General, Support, for First Army Division East, Fort Meade, Md.; and Assistant Chief of Staff for U.S. Africa Command. Daniels also served as Commander of the Theater Support Command, which consisted of 11 Military Intelligence battalions, and in numerous military leadership positions including command of a Military Intelligence company in Korea, a basic training battalion in New Jersey, and a Military Intelligence group in Massachusetts. She completed Civil Affairs deployment to Kosovo as well as a deployment to Iraq where she served as the Chief of Plans and Integration and then as the Director for Intelligence for the Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq.In her civilian career, Daniels was the Director of Advanced Programs for Lockheed Martin's Advanced Technology Laboratories (LM ATL). Prior to that, she was the Director of the Contextual Systems Laboratory and was a manager and engineer in LM ATL’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. She has served on the Defense Advanced Research Programs Agency (DARPA) Information Science and Technology (ISAT) Review Board, on the ISAT Steering Committee, and Drexel University's Computer Science Department Advisory Board.Daniels holds a B.S. in Applied Mathematics (Computer Science) from Carnegie Mellon University, a M.S. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Massachusetts (Amherst), and a M.S. in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College. She is a native of Rolla, Mo. and is married to Col. (Ret.) John McCarthy.

Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. is the Chairman of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee. In addition, he serves on the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee and is Vice Chair on the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Subcommittee. He has represented the Second Congressional District of Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1993. As an appropriator and legislator he seeks to use the legislative process to create a better quality of life for all citizens by promoting jobs and a stronger, more diversified economy; opportunities for rural areas; better education; safe and secure communities; a clean environment; affordable and accessible health care; sustainable agriculture; energy independence; and a strong national defense -- all within the context of a balanced budget.