Robert McDonald, who the president tapped last week to be the next secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, is scheduled to meet with Sen. Bernard Sanders, Vermont independent, Tuesday afternoon on Capitol Hill.
The former director of Procter & Gamble’s meeting with the chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee is the first step to being confirmed as the next leader of the department.
In addition to experience running a large business at Procter and Gamble, Mr. McDonald is a West Point graduate who served for five years in the Army, rising to the rank of captain.
If confirmed by the Senate, Mr. McDonald would replace acting Secretary Sloan Gibson, who took over when Eric Shinseki resigned earlier this year amid a growing scandal at the VA where several reports found evidence of falsified records and poor patient care throughout the system.
Rep. Jeff Miller, Florida Republican and chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, has not met with Mr. McDonald yet, according to a committee staff member.
“We’ve tried to set up a meeting for Chairman Miller with Bob McDonald, but the White House has only offered to make McDonald available for a phone call at this point, with a face-to-face meeting possible within the next several weeks,” the staffer said.
• Jacqueline Klimas can be reached at jklimas@washingtontimes.com.
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