Veterans groups fear Trump will 'burn down' VA

[Eugene]

Source: Politico

Veterans groups fear Trump will 'burn down' VA

By BRYAN BENDER 12/02/16 05:04 AM EST

Donald Trump won the White House pledging to use his business acumen to overhaul the Department of Veterans Affairs, the poster child for government mismanagement — even if he has to "pick up the phone and fix it myself."

But Trump’s leading candidates to run the troubled Cabinet department strike fear in many veteran's advocates, current and former agency officials and members of Congress, who worry that the new administration will aim to gut the VA and privatize many of its services.

Whether Trump chooses Sarah Palin, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, conservative activist Peter Hegseth, outgoing Rep. Jeff Miller or former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown — all reported to be in the running — the advocates say they are bracing for an ideological assault on the $180 billion-a-year agency with 350,000 employees.

"The worst case scenario within the vets community is a total dismantling of everything they worked generations to create," said Paul Rieckhoff, executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, who has been critical of the VA. "There is a growing fear it is all going to get burned down."

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Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2016/12/veterans-affairs-trump-232088

[The River]

1. Wrong Group of Citizens

to be messing with.

[heaven05]

2. yep

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

3. And yet, some vets voted for him

even after he said he preferred people who DIDN'T get captured.

even after he said that the STRONG ones don't get PTSD.

many vets STILL supported Trump.

I'm sure he prefers veterans who DON'T need the V.A.

-- a bozo, veteran since '68

[niyad]

4. the other day when I was going through the supermarket parking lot, I passed a car

with a "veterans for trump" sticker (right after we heard about the tundra grifter being considered for head of the VA) I thought about sticking around to ask the person how s/he felt about that clueless twit being in charge. decided it wasn't worth the effort.