An American Hero
Eric Shinseki resigned Friday as secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The decision was announced by President Barack Obama after a meeting with the retired four-star general at the White House to discuss widespread misconduct and mismanagement at VA medical centers. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee chairman, praised Shinseki and called him “an American hero who courageously served his country in war, rose to be the Army chief of staff and has dedicated his distinguished career to helping his fellow soldiers and veterans. I am sad that he resigned. The unequivocal goal of the VA must be to provide the highest-quality health care possible to all of our veterans in a timely manner. The new leadership must transform the culture of the VA, establish accountability and punish those responsible for the reprehensible manipulation of wait times. As chairman of the Senate veterans’ committee I look forward to working with President Obama, the new VA leadership and my Senate colleagues to make that happen.” Interviewed by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Sanders said Shinseki’s “got an enormous amount of guts” and “does not get the credit he deserves” for making significant improvements at the VA.
