BILLINGS - In Billings Wednesday, Senator Barack Obama spoke to an invitation-only crowd of 200 veterans, family members, and volunteers.

He began with the story of his grandfather, a veteran. Throughout his speech he emphasized the need for mental health screenings for soldiers returning from war and access to health care in rural Montana. Senator Obama said, "I am going to fight as hard as I can over the next 70 days to make clear to the American people that they deserve a president and a White House that is fighting for them. We've got a VA that is chronically under-funded. The thousands of troops that are coming home right now are not getting the help they need. It's heartbreaking. Almost no other state has a higher concentration of veterans than Montana or as many obstacles to veterans getting the treatment they need for PTSD. If we don't deal with it now, then we are going to end up, in one way or another, dealing with it later: with more homeless on the street, more folks in prisons, more people who are unable to adjust. We're a proud people. We're a self reliant people, but ultimately what makes this country great is that we understand we rise and fall together and it's that spirit I want to restore to Washington."

Obama headed straight from Riverfront Park to his flight to Denver for the Democratic National Convention. Obama will give his acceptance speech for the Democratic Presidential Nomination Thursday night.