U.S. Sen Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) continues to criticize the Biden administration for its supposed failures in properly funding the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) after the agency announced a massive cash shortfall.
The VA has been in hot water recently. Last month, it informed Congress that it required an additional $15 billion to cover costs for the rest of this fiscal year and into 2025.
In a letter to VA secretary Denis McDonough, House VA Committee chairman U.S. Rep. Michael Bost (R-Ill.) called the shortfall the biggest in the VA’s history. Chief financial officers from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) told Bost the funding discrepancy was due to increased hiring and drug costs.
The announcement came just months after McDonough faced harsh criticism from Congress after the VA admitted to improperly paying top executives over $11 million in bonuses.
The VA’s additional funding request has already drawn criticism from many Republican lawmakers, including Tuberville, who sits on the Senate House Armed Services Committee. Earlier this week, Tuberville blasted the VA’s perceived financial mismanagement and the secretive tactics used by VA officials to subvert the budget process.
“For nearly four years, the Biden administration’s Department of Veterans Affairs has been failing its core mission of providing timely and quality care to our veterans,” Tuberville told reporters. “From number one, undermining veterans’ access to community care. Two, allowing employees to process healthcare claims for illegal aliens. And, number three, re-hiring employees who were previously fired for failing to do their jobs. There are multiple instances where this administration has failed those who honorably served this country.”
“Now, the VA has fumbled the ball once again," he continued. "The Department is now facing a $15 billion shortfall thanks to poor management of taxpayer-allotted resources. You heard that right; they are $15 billion short halfway through the year. Instead of taking ownership for this error, the VA is trying to politicize its failures to get more money from Congress. The VA leaders conveniently waited until after the House and Senate both passed their appropriations bills to come forward about the shortfall. There’s no way that Secretary McDonough and other bureaucrats at the VA couldn’t see this coming from miles away. I do not believe that they just found out about this issue two weeks ago, but this administration is so used to spinning the narrative to get their way, they thought they could pull one over on us.”
Tuberville expressed his support for America’s veterans while still demanding that Congress hold a hearing to examine the true cause of the cash shortfall.
“Let me be clear: I support our veterans; my father was a veteran. I went to college on the GI bill, but I do not support writing a blank check to a department that has proved it is incapable of being a good steward of taxpayer dollars or helping our veterans," he outlined. "That’s why I am joining my Republican colleagues in demanding a hearing to investigate how the VA allowed this to happen and ensure it never happens again. I hope the VA bureaucrats will stop playing political games and take accountability for its failures."
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
