Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, I rise in support of my amendment, which would ensure that any VA employee whose performance or misconduct threatens public health or safety, including the health and safety of veterans, be immediately suspended without pay. Specifically, it replaces section 3 of H.R. 5620 with a new provision allowing the Secretary to take lawful and abrupt action in extreme cases in which immediate action is warranted. My amendment would also give the Secretary the authority to remove a suspended employee, after a thorough investigation and review, if the Secretary determines removal is in the interest of public health and safety. Both parties share the desire to protect veterans from mistreatment or harm, especially when they are seeking medical care at a VA hospital, but the current language in this bill will not accomplish that goal. The process for removing dangerous employees in H.R. 5620 is unconstitutional, and any action it authorized against underperforming VA employees would not hold up in court. Instead of achieving the majority's stated outcome of removing VA employees whose misconduct harms veterans, this bill would produce expensive legal costs, and it would fail to hold bad employees accountable. My amendment is specifically designed to make sure the Secretary has the authority to immediately suspend any VA employee whose behavior threatens the health and safety of veterans and that the suspended employee receives no pay while the investigation is carried out.…”