Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, I appreciate the gentleman's support. Mr. Chair, I include in the Record six letters from numerous veterans service organizations in support of H.R. 5620, as amended. Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, August 26, 2016. Hon. Jeff Miller, Chairman, House Committee on Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Miller, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) and our 425,000 members are pleased to offer our strong support for H.R. 5620, the VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act. It has been over two years since the scandal in Phoenix alerted the country to the egregious state of the VA health care system. And yet little has been done to ensure the VA is equipped with the necessary authorities to address workforce accountability. The large majority of VA employees serve veterans with distinction, but there are employees whose poor performance or, at worst, gross negligence put veterans at risk. They need to immediately be removed from the VA to restore trust within the VA system. IAVA believes this legislation provides the VA leadership those necessary authorities while still providing due process. While accountability at the VA is past due, the changes to due process and the appointments clause ensure such accountability is done responsibly. Additionally, this legislation provides many improvements to the disability compensation appeals process desperately needed at the VA to better manage the appeals backlog.…”