VA secretary insists he’s staying
Probe focuses on security detail use for personal tasks
WASHINGTON — Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, under fire for ethics violations, said Thursday that he has no intention of leaving his job even as the
White House hinted at the possibility of “personnel changes” among agency leaders.
Speaking at a budget hearing, Shulkin expressed regret for “distractions” that have shifted attention from his efforts to fix veterans’ health care and pledged to put the government’s second-largest department back on track.
Shulkin, the lone Obama administration holdover in Trump’s Cabinet, praised the congressional oversight committees for largely standing behind him to fix the Department of Veterans Affairs. Critics, he said, were “more interested in politics.”
Addressing a government investigation underway into his alleged use of security detail for personal errands, Shulkin denied that he was using the taxpayer-paid armed guards any differently from other members of the Trump Cabinet.
“I publicly acknowledge the distraction is something I deeply regret,” he said.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders declined to endorse of Shulkin on Thursday. She said President Donald Trump believes the nation’s veterans are being generally well-served but that the White House was actively studying ways to improve the VA, such as possible changes “at the top level.”
“The president has a large number of individuals that are working hard to make sure that the VA is helping veterans at the best level possible,” she said. “I can tell you that every day we’re looking for how we can better the system, whether it’s through policy changes or personnel changes, not just at the top level but across the board.”