WASHINGTON – Tonight, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will both take the stage in New York for a forum hosted by the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) focused on national security, military affairs, and veterans’ issues.

Donna Brazile, Interim Chair of the DNC, and Don Fowler and Jan Donatelli, Co-Chairs of the DNC Veterans and Military Families Council issued the following joint statement:

“Before the candidates take the stage, this much is already clear: Hillary Clinton is ready to serve as commander-in-chief on day one.

“She understands that using military force can have deadly serious consequences, and she does not take lightly the solemn sacrifices that military families make to defend our nation. She has been in the situation room when it counts. She has a steady hand, an even temperament, and she listens to our generals and military experts. Hillary Clinton also believes that supporting our veterans is a sacred responsibility. And she has serious, substantive plans to reform the VA and guarantee that our veterans have reliable and consistent access to the high-quality health care they’ve earned.

“As a Senator from New York, Clinton supported health benefits for first responders at Ground Zero after the horrific 9/11 attacks, and she cosponsored the Post-9/11 GI Bill of Rights. As President Obama's top diplomat, Clinton visited 112 counties (more than any Secretary of State in our history), traveling 956,733 miles to represent the United States of America and strengthen alliances around the world.

“Donald Trump, on the other hand, has shown time and time again that he lacks the judgment and temperament to serve as commander in chief.

“In the course of his campaign, Trump has disrespected our men and women in uniform, deceived veterans groups about his charitable giving, called our military ‘a disaster,’ claimed he knows ‘more about ISIS than the generals,’ and has talked openly about abandoning our NATO alliances. Trump disparaged a Gold Star family, praised foreign strongmen like Vladimir Putin, and refused to rule out using nuclear weapons on European soil. We cannot trust him with the nuclear codes.

“The contrast is stark and the choice is clear. We must elect Hillary Clinton as the next president of the United States.”