Former Procter & Gamble CEO Robert McDonald has the necessary “management chops” to reform the Department of Veterans Affairs and fix systemic problems in how health care is delivered to veterans, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Monday.
President Obama will formally nominate Mr. McDonald later Monday afternoon to be his next VA secretary. If confirmed by the Senate, Mr. McDonald, a military veteran who spent more than 30 years at Procter & Gamble, would replace former VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, who resigned last month.
“Those management chops are going to be critical to his success,” Mr. Earnest said of Mr. McDonald’s credentials. “This is somebody who has a lot of experience and has enjoyed a lot of success in managing a large company, and the VA is a large organization that is performing very important work and there are some important changes that need to be made.”
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Rob Nabors and acting VA Secretary Sloan Gibson released a review last week showing deep problems inside the department.
The VA has been under intense fire following revelations that as many as 40 veterans died while waiting for care at a Phoenix-area facility. Subsequently, allegations have surfaced that VA officials kept secret waiting lists to hide lengthy wait times for care.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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