The Public Record
Mark Kirk is a former Republican U.S. Senator from Illinois, serving from 2010 to 2017. He was the first Republican to win a U.S. Senate seat in Illinois since 1970. During his time in office, Kirk was known for his moderate positions on various issues, including support for same-sex marriage and a focus on national security. He served on several Senate committees, including the Armed Services Committee and the Appropriations Committee. Kirk's tenure was marked by his efforts to promote bipartisanship and address fiscal challenges facing the country.
The only practical impact of the President's gun show provision will be to intimidate and frighten law abiding citizens so that they will refrain from selling their guns at all for fear they will be prosecuted for failure to register as a…
This is why legislation such as that introduced by Senator Kirk is so incredibly important.
Accountability for illegal retaliation has been missing in other pending VA legislation.
A consistent theme emerged from these accounts: the VA does not hold those who retaliate against whistleblowers accountable for their actions and continues to fail to combat the culture of corruption and intimidation within the VA.
I wish to extend my gratitude to Senator Kirk and his staff for the continued attention to the alarming matter of whistleblower retaliation.
Thank you for allowing me to submit testimony for the record for this legislative hearing on behalf of my bill S. 2291, VA Patient Protection Act.
It is totally demoralizing for us to hear all of this about our own VA taking care of the best of the best.
So we could say that those 800 whistleblowers are all protected, and the Inspector General does not even know who they are.
This important piece has been missing in other pending VA legislation but is one of the strongest aspects of Chairman Kirk's VA Patient Protection Act.
We need to focus on legislation to protect the protectors and to make sure that medical professionals...are able to report mistreatment.
The Government has failed in its sacred responsibility to care for our veterans.
Congress should enact legislation, like Chairman Kirk's VA Patient Protection Act, to increase protections for VA whistleblowers.
We greatly appreciate Chairman Kirk's continued support and applaud his commitment fixing these issues at the VA.
You have also shown me that it is possible for a republican and democrat, who is also a union leader that we can work together.
If an individual veteran says, 'Hey, I am thinking about committing suicide,' is there a way to make sure that you see him right away?
In your job of protecting the protectors, I would think you are particularly vulnerable to retaliation.
You have also shown me that it is possible for a Republican and a Democrat, who is also a union leader, that we can work together.
So many of these veterans had no idea that they had severe medical heart issues because the VA never even bothered to read the echocardiogram?
What can you do?'' they ask. I want the American public to contemplate that question for a moment and then consider an alternative perspective and perceive it as, ``What should I do?''
You have gone through extensively the bonus program, which I have looked into, in which the Hines VA paid over $16 million in bonuses to employees there.
Senator Kirk, thank you for the opportunity to provide my testimony to discuss the culture of continued fear and retaliation at Edward Hines, Jr Hospital.
Politicians like Mark Kirk
