As a Marine, family physician, law school graduate, Arkansas Senator, and U.S. Representative of the eight counties of central Arkansas from 1998 to 2011, Snyder devoted his life to serving the people of Arkansas and the nation. His experience as a Vietnam veteran shaped his time in Congress and his service on the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs (HVAC), the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), and the HASC Oversight Subcommittee.
DRAFTING AND PASSING
Legislation
Members of Congress have two related but distinct responsibilities. Members have a legislative role, mostly conducted in Washington, which involved drafting legislation and passing it in the House of Representatives. Because of his leadership roles on HVAC and HASC, much of Snyder’s work in Washington focused on crafting the massive legislative documents that encompassed hundreds of billions of dollars that guided and funded the Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). His work on the yearly National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) shaped the operations and force structure of the U.S. military for decades. Because of his enduring commitment to care for active service members and veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, Snyder gained respect from across the aisle and in the departments his committees oversaw.
REPRESENTING
Service Members
Members of Congress also provided constituent services for the residents of their district as described in Richard Fenno’s classic 1978 book, Home Style: House Members in their Districts. Snyder’s Little Rock office had a reputation as a place where people could get help, whether it was a state, federal, or local issue. To serve the people of the Second Congressional District, this office was staffed with subject-matter experts on many topics, including Social Security, military and veterans issues, the Small Business Administration, agricultural issues, and district construction projects. Snyder also cooperated closely with his fellow Arkansas delegates, regardless of party, for many projects that benefitted the whole state.
In his role representing Central Arkansas, Snyder improved the capabilities of the Little Rock Air Force Base (LRAFB), where all U.S. and allied pilots train to fly the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. Because of his leadership, millions of dollars were appropriated for military construction projects at LRAFB, including improved housing for service members, aircraft hangers, and runway renovations. He also worked on projects at major Arkansas Army National Guard training locations such as Fort Chaffee and Camp Robinson. Among these projects was the development of a state-of-the-art helicopter maintenance facility at Camp Robinson.
REPRESENTING
Veterans
Supporting the Veterans Department was always a priority for Snyder. He worked to expand and update the major VA hospitals in central Arkansas, and he improved the VA medical centers in Fayetteville and Batesville. He also established satellite VA out-patient clinics across the state.
Because of his professionalism and knowledge of the issues, Snyder was widely respected by his fellow members of Congress on both sides of the aisle. As evidenced in his interview on Stephen Colbert’s Comedy Central parody talk show, he had a reputation for taking public service seriously while maintaining a healthy sense of humor about himself. During his tenure in Congress, Snyder continually advocated for and was honored to represent the service members and veterans of Central Arkansas.
For More Information:
Anderson, Nick, and Richard Simon. “For Dissenters, ‘Nos’ Were a Vote of Conscience.” Los Angeles Times, October 11, 2002. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-oct-11-na-dissent11-story.html.
Colbert, Stephen, host. The Colbert Report. Season 3, “Better Know a District-Arkansas’ 2nd-Vic Snyder.” Featuring Victor Snyder. Aired February 15, 1989. Comedy Central. https://www.cc.com/video/gxjtk4/the-colbert-report-better-know-a-district-arkansas-2nd-vic-snyder.
Fenno, Richard Jr. Home Style: House Members in their Districts. New York: Harper Collins, 1978.
House Armed Services Committee. “Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Building Foreign Language and Cultural Skills in our Military: Improving but Still Work To Do.” Press Release. June 29, 2010. https://armedservices.house.gov/2010/6/oversight-and-investigations-subcommittee-holds-hearing-on-building-foreign-language-and-cultural-skills-in-our-military--improving-but-still-work-to-do.
U.S. Congress. House. To provide for the establishment of separate campaign medals to be awarded to members of the uniformed services who participate in Operation Enduring Freedom and to members of the uniformed services who participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom. HR 3104. 108th Cong. 2004. https://www.congress.gov/bill/108th-congress/house-bill/3104/text.
About the Author:
Lieutenant Colonel Devon Cockrell is currently assigned as Plans Officer, U.S. Army Pacific-Support Unit, 9th Mission Support Command, Fort Shafter, Hawaii. He holds an MA in political science from the University of Arkansas and an MMAS from the Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. His previous assignments include course manager and instructor of the Psychological Operations Officer Qualification Course at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and tours in Korea and deployments to Iraq in 2004 and 2009. From 1998-2011, he served on the staff of U.S. Congressman Vic Snyder, specializing in Military and Veterans issues.