WMAL Interview - JESSIE JANE DUFF - 03.29.18

Mar 29, 2018, 12:32 PM

Interview - JESSIE JANE DUFF - Gunnery Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps (ret), Senior Fellow at the London Center for Policy Research and longtime advocate for veterans issues – discussed the removal of VA Secretary David Shulkin and the nomination of the President’s Physician Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson

•    Trump fires VA Secretary David Shulkin, nominates White House doctor as replacement (CBS News) -- Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin became the latest member of President Trump's cabinet to be terminated on Wednesday. Mr. Trump announced that he was replacing Shulkin in a series of tweets, and said he would nominate Adm. Ronny Jackson, who had been serving as the president's doctor, to replace him. "I appreciate the work of Dr. David Shulkin and the many great things we did together at Veterans Affairs, including the VA Accountability Act that he was helpful in getting passed," the president added in a statement. "He has been a great supporter of veterans across the country and I am grateful for his service." Shulkin's departure follows a series of blunders for the secretary of the already embattled VA, including reported insurgencies inside his own department to complications surrounding his improper use of travel expenses. After raising eyebrows for traveling to Europe last summer with his wife on the VA's dime, Shulkin faced numerous calls on Capitol Hill for his ouster. He was is one of five Trump cabinet officials whose travel practices were scrutinized by internal watchdogs. In a 97-page report released last month, the VA's inspector general found that Shulkin made "misleading statements," "improperly accepted Wimbledon tickets" and turned an aide into a "personal travel concierge" to plan "high tea" and "Roman baths" at the request of Shulkin's wife.