Even before a searing report put the job of Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin at risk, some White House staffers were pushing a health care agenda at odds with his. The infighting has left vets frustrated, Congress confused — and a key piece of legislation stalemated.
by Isaac Arnsdorf
by Isaac Arnsdorf
This article was co-published with Politico.
David Shulkin, the secretary of the Department of Veterans
Affairs, showed up to what he thought would be a routine Senate
oversight hearing in January, only to discover it was an ambush.
Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., was the sole holdout among members of the
veterans affairs committee on a bill that would shape the future of the
agency. The bipartisan bill had the support of 26 service groups
representing millions of veterans. But Moran was pushing a rival piece
of legislation, and it had the support of a White House aide who wields
significant clout on veterans policy. Neither proposal could advance as
long as there was any doubt about which President Donald Trump wanted to
sign.
Moran blamed Shulkin for the impasse. “In every instance, you led me
to believe that you and I were on the same page,” Moran said at the
hearing. “Our inability to reach an agreement is in significant part
related to your ability to speak out of both sides of your mouth: double
talk.”
There were gasps in the hearing room. It was an astounding rebuke for
a Trump appointee to receive from a Republican senator, especially for
Shulkin, who was confirmed by the Senate unanimously.
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Source: ProPublica
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