‘Painful, frustrating delays’: Biden recalls son Beau’s cancer ordeal as he speaks about burn pits legislation

President Biden on Tuesday praised America’s military veterans as the “solid steel spine of our nation” as he hailed the Department of Veterans Affairs’ progress in implementing a two-year-old law that has a deeply personal backstory for his family.

The president said that the matter of helping veterans suffering illnesses related to exposure to toxins was “personal” for him on account of what happened to his late son, Joseph R Biden III — better known as Beau.

Beau Biden, who had been elected to serve as Attorney General in his family’s home state of Delaware, was also an Army National Guard major and judge advocate who served overseas in Iraq. There, he was exposed to burn pits.

In 2013, he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a highly aggressive form of brain cancer. He passed away two years later.

The president said his late son’s ordeal left him “determined… come hell or high water” to “protect the heroes who protect our nation,” and compared the plight of today’s veterans to Vietnam-era veterans who had trouble proving that their illness were related to exposure to Agent Orange during their service.

“That’s why I pushed the PACT Act — so today’s veterans don’t suffer the same painful, frustrating delays and denials,” he said. “That’s why we continue to work around the clock to get veterans benefits they deserve and get them now.” He noted that a number of Republicans had voted against the bill.

Speaking in Nashua, New Hampshire, Biden said the bipartisan bill in question — whose official name is the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act — was part of what he described as America’s “truly sacred obligation” to care for military veterans and their families.

He also