US EditionA Democratic senator is putting holds on VA nominees to protest Trump’s plans to cut its workforce
- On Tuesday, Arizona Senator and Marine Corps veteran Ruben Gallego, a Democrat, announced he would block the confirmation of top leaders at the Department of Veterans Affairs .
- Gallego's action is in response to the Trump administration's plans to cut jobs at the VA, a move Democrats are pushing back against.
- This action marks a significant escalation in Democrats' effort to counter Trump's plans to slash federal agencies, using a Senate maneuver known as a hold, which makes it impossible to quickly confirm nominees.
- Gallego, after speaking with veterans and seeing the situation in Arizona, stated to The Associated Press, "whatever tool I have to fix the situation, I'm going to use it. And this is one of the few tools I have at this point," referencing the hold.
- The VA plans to cut its workforce by over 80,000 people, potentially returning staffing levels to just under 400,000 as in 2019, even as the VA provides benefits under the 2022 PACT Act to veterans impacted by burn pits and toxin exposure, with Democrats warning that these cuts will affect care for veterans.
33 Articles
33 Articles
2 Democratic senators pledge to block VA nominees over plans to fire 83,000 workers
A Senate confirmation hearing for three nominees to assume leadership posts at the Department of Veterans Affairs was derailed Tuesday after Sen. Ruben Gallego announced his intention to block a vote on the Senate floor unless the VA reconsiders a plan to fire 83,000 workers.
Army Times
Marine Corps TimesSenator vows to hold all VA nominees over planned staff cuts
Arizona Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego on Tuesday vowed to hold all senior Veterans Affairs nominees in an effort to force department leaders to reconsider massive planned cuts to the agency’s workforce in coming months.The move by Gallego — a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee and a Marine Corps veteran who saw combat in Iraq — came on the same day the committee held confirmation hearings for three senior department posts.Republica…
A Democratic Senator Is Putting Holds on VA Nominees to Protest Trump's Plans to Cut Its Workforce
Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego announced he will block the confirmation of top leaders at the Department of Veterans Affairs, raising the stakes in Democrats' bid to get the Trump administration to back off plans to cut jobs from the sprawling agency that serves millions of military veterans.
Senate Democrat will block Trump’s VA nominees to protest cuts
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) says he will put a hold on President Trump’s nominees to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to protest cuts at the agency that provides lifelong health care services to military veterans. “Talking to veterans, people that I served with as well as seeing some of what’s happening in Arizona, I decided that whatever tool I have to fix the situation, I’m going to use it. And this is one of the few tools I have …
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