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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) – co-chairs of the Senate Aerospace Caucus – this week met with Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) President and Chief Executive Officer Eric Fanning, who was selected to lead the association effective January 1, 2018. In welcoming Mr. Fanning in his new capacity with AIA, Sens. Moran and Warner emphasized the caucus’s longstanding partnership with AIA and discussed collaborative ways to continue growing the aerospace industry as AIA prepares to celebrate its centennial anniversary.
“In Kansas – from cybersecurity to aircraft manufacturing and developing a talented workforce to maintain American supremacy – the aerospace industry has an impact on every corner of our state,” said Sen. Moran. “The aerospace industry is where a strong national defense and stable economy converge, and as co-chairs of the Senate Aerospace Caucus, Sen. Warner and I are committed to making certain that America’s defense, civil aviation and space sectors advance amidst global challenges. With extensive experience in the executive and legislative branches of our government, I know Eric shares this commitment, and I look forward to working with my caucus colleagues and industry leaders in safeguarding and promoting American innovation.”
“Our nation’s aerospace industry is driving innovation and pursuing cutting edge technologies, contributing both to U.S. national security and our economic competitiveness,” said Sen. Warner. “As Co-Chair of the Senate Aerospace Caucus, I look forward to working with my co-chair Senator Moran, the Aerospace Industries Association, and our manufacturers and suppliers on a range of critical issues, including workforce development, unmanned systems, increased R&D, defense modernization efforts, and ways to improve cybersecurity within these critical industries. Congratulations to Eric Fanning on his new position as President and CEO of AIA.”
“I’m honored to be working once again with Senators Moran and Warner,” said AIA President and CEO Eric Fanning. “I’ve seen firsthand their commitment to the aerospace industry, the critical role it plays in our nation’s security, and the enormous impact it has on our economy.”
Items to note:
- Fanning previously served as the 22nd Secretary of the Army, Chief of Staff to the Secretary of Defense, both Acting Secretary and Under Secretary of the Air Force, and has worked in the White House and on Capitol Hill.
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) – Chairman and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, and Data Security with jurisdiction over the health and safety of USA Gymnastics, US Olympic and NCAA athletes – today sent letters to USA Gymnastics (USAG), U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) and Michigan State University (MSU) regarding systemic failures to protect athletes from sexual abuse and the reported filing of a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) to silence a victim of abuse.
“On December 20, 2017, Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney filed a lawsuit against the United States Olympic Committee, USA Gymnastics, and Michigan State University for the multiple organizational failures to ‘properly investigate, discipline, or remove’ sports doctor Larry Nassar after complaints of sexual abuse suffered under his care,” the senators state in the letter. “The despicable actions of the former USAG team doctor and sports medicine physician at MSU are well documented. However, recent reports and revelations from Dr. Nassar’s sentencing hearings provide ample evidence that USAG and MSU were negligent in acting on reports of Nassar’s abuse of more than 140 young women.”
“Of particular concern is the recent allegation that USAG actively sought to silence Ms. Maroney with a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that would impose a $100,000 fine if the victim were to violate its confidentiality clause by speaking out about the sexual abuse,” the senators continue. “As the Chairman and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, and Data Security, we are requesting additional information on these matters.”
Please see below the full letter to USAG. Additionally, click here for the letters to USOC and MSU.
January 25, 2018
Ms. Kerry Perry
President and Chief Executive Officer
USA Gymnastics
130 E. Washington Street, Suite 700
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Dear Ms. Perry,
On December 20, 2017, Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney filed a lawsuit against the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), USA Gymnastics (USAG), and Michigan State University (MSU) for the multiple organizational failures to “properly investigate, discipline, or remove” sports doctor Larry Nassar after complaints of sexual abuse suffered under his care. The despicable actions of the former USAG team doctor and sports medicine physician at MSU, first brought to light in a thorough investigation by the Indianapolis Star in 2016, are well documented[1]. However, recent reports and revelations from Dr. Nassar’s sentencing hearings provide ample evidence that USAG and MSU were negligent in acting on reports of Nassar’s abuse of more than 140 young women[2].
Of particular concern is the recent allegation that USAG actively sought to silence Ms. Maroney with a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that would impose a $100,000 fine if the victim were to violate its confidentiality clause by speaking out about the sexual abuse[3]. As the Chairman and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, and Data Security, we are requesting additional information on these matters.
Protecting athletes remains a key priority of this Committee. Its jurisdiction includes the Ted Stevens Act[4], which established USOC and the current National Governing Bodies (NGB) structure for individual sports. A key aim of that legislation is to protect the health and safety of athletes. In addition, the Committee exercises jurisdiction over amateur sports and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which itself serves as the governing body for 347 Division I member schools including MSU.
While we appreciate the efforts by USOC to establish the U.S. Center for Safe Sport, which is focused on protecting the well-being of athletes on and off the field,[5] it is obvious that additional measures need to be taken in order to prevent similarly heinous crimes from occurring in the future while ensuring appropriate reporting in the unfortunate event that they do. Accordingly, we were pleased to see S. 534, the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act of 2017, pass the Senate last year. This legislation would alleviate any confusion or uncertainty surrounding the responsibility of NGBs and associated volunteers to report child and sexual abuse to law enforcement by making it a federal crime in failing to do so.
In light of these serious allegations, and pursuant to the Committee’s oversight responsibilities, please answer the following questions:
- What reporting protocols for child and sexual abuse allegations are currently in place to ensure that all reports receive fair, timely, and thorough review by all appropriate parties, including law enforcement?
- Are there special accommodations to account for volunteers that are separately employed by non-NGB institutions, like MSU, in these reporting practices?
- In her lawsuit against USOC, USAG, and MSU, Ms. Maroney alleges that she was “coerced” into signing the NDA while under emotional duress from Dr. Nassar’s abuse. To the extent possible, please provide all details possible regarding the justification and circumstances surrounding Ms. Maroney’s NDA with USAG.
- Is it common practice by USOC and NGBs to utilize NDAs during investigations involving their organizations?
- Is your organization aware of other such settlements between NGBs and Olympic athletes?
- What steps are being taken to prevent these atrocities from occurring again, whether in gymnastics or any Olympic sport?
- In addition to answering these questions, please provide a detailed timeline of reports and ensuing action from your organization related to Dr. Nassar’s criminal sexual conduct.
Please provide the requested information as soon as possible, but by no later than Friday, February 9, 2018. If you have any questions, please contact our staff. Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
JERRY MORAN
Chairman
Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, and Data Security
RICHARD BLUMENTHAL
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, and Data Security
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[1] Tim Evans, et al, Former USA Gymnastics Doctor Accused of Abuse, INDIANAPOLIS STAR, Sept. 12, 2016.
[2] Kim Kozlowski, What MSU Knew: 14 Were Warned of Nassar Abuse, DETROIT NEWS, Jan. 17, 2018.
[3] See, e.g. Richard Winton, David Wharton and Gus Garcia-Roberts, McKayla Maroney accuses USOC and USA Gymnastics of Covering up Sexual Abuse with Secret Settlement, LA TIMES, Dec. 21, 2017.
[4] Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act, 36 U.S.C. §§ 220501-220512, 220521-220529.
[5] Press Release, U.S. Olympic Comm., United States Olympic Committee announces U.S. Center for Safe Sport board of directors (Jan. 21, 2016).
Sen. Moran Applauds Appointment of Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback as Ambassador-at-Large for Religious Freedom
Jan 24 2018
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) today released the following statement after voting to confirm Gov. Sam Brownback as United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom:
“Governor Brownback has long demonstrated his commitment to promoting the freedom of all to practice the religion of their choice. He will now be in a position to continue this important work as our Ambassador-at-Large for Religious Freedom."
Items to Note:
- On Monday, Sen. Moran presided over the Senate as consideration of Gov. Brownback began and voted in favor of advancing his nomination.
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Information Regarding a Government Shutdown
Jan 20 2018
My office is open and available to assist you if you have any questions regarding federal services during a government shutdown. Please don’t hesitate to contact my office or visit my website for additional details.
Q: Will I still receive my Social Security checks?
A: Yes. Social Security checks will continue to be mailed out.
Q: Will I still be able to send/receive mail?
A: Yes. The United States Postal Service has its own revenue stream outside of the federal government.
Q: Will air travel be affected?
A: Air traffic controllers, TSA and Customs officers will continue working, so air traffic should be largely unaffected.
Q: Will Smithsonian Museums remain open?
A: Smithsonian Museums in Washington, D.C., as well as the National Zoo, will remain open throughout the weekend. Smithsonian Museums and the National Zoo will close Monday, January 22 if the government has not yet re-opened.
Q: Will I still receive my Medicare checks?
A: Yes. Medicare checks will continue to be mailed out.
Q: Will I still get my food stamps?
A: Yes. Food stamps will continue to be distributed.
Q: Will National Parks be open?
A: War memorials and open air parks will remain open to the public. Many national parks, refuges and other public lands will try to allow limited park access wherever possible.
For more information regarding national parks during a shutdown, please visit the United States Department of Interior.
Q: What will happen to our military?
A: Active-duty military will continue in a normal duty status and global military operations will continue. Military personnel will not be paid until the government re-opens. Civilian personnel who are necessary to carry out or support excepted activities will also continue in normal duty status and also will not be paid until the government re-opens. Non-essential civilian employees will be furloughed in a non-work, non-pay status.
Q: Will VA facilities be affected?
A: No. The vast majority of the VA is exempted from a government shutdown and facilities should be fully operational.
For more information regarding veterans services during a shutdown, please visit the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
Q: Will military contractors be affected?
A: No.
For more information regarding military policies during a shutdown, please visit the United States Department of Defense.
Q: Can non-furloughed employees perform other work?
A: If the non-furlough ("excepted') support function can be performed in less than an entire day, the employee is required to resume furlough status after completing the function.
However, there may be cases in which an employee is required to perform this "excepted" support function intermittently throughout the course of the day, and the intervals in between are too short to enable the employee to be furloughed and then recalled in time to perform the function. In such cases, the employee may remain at work, and may perform non-"excepted" functions during these intervals.
For more information regarding federal employees during a shutdown, please visit the Office of Management and Budget.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) today applauded the Senate Judiciary Committee’s unanimous vote in favor of Ms. Holly Teeter of Lenexa, Kan., to serve as a federal judge for the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. Sen. Moran supported her nomination in 2017, introducing her to the Senate Judiciary Committee for her confirmation hearing and sharing the recommendations of Ms. Teeter’s colleagues with Judiciary Committee members.
“Ms. Teeter is exceedingly qualified to serve Kansans as a federal judge,” said Sen. Moran. “Her bright legal mind, wide variety of legal experiences and exemplary temperament are widely recognized by her colleagues. The bipartisan support she received from members of the Senate Judiciary Committee during her hearing last year make it clear that she is an exceptional choice. Additionally, the judgeship Ms. Teeter has been nominated for has been vacant for longer than many other seats in the nation, and Kansans are eager to see the role filled. I am pleased my Senate Judiciary Committee colleagues have acted swiftly on her nomination and I hope the full Senate will soon have the chance to confirm Ms. Teeter.”
If confirmed by the Senate, Teeter, a University of Kansas School of Law graduate, will join the United States District Court for the District of Kansas with a lifetime appointment. The U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas is a federal trial court that processes civil and criminal cases that come under federal jurisdiction. The District of Kansas covers the full state of Kansas.
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) today spoke on the Senate floor regarding his plan to keep the government open and the need for common-sense, responsible, long-term funding solutions.
“The goal here is to keep government functioning – not shutting the government down – and also to have the discipline necessary to put an appropriations process in place and stop the cycle of short-term funding bills,” said Sen. Moran. “To that end, I’d suggest a CR that lasts only a few days, keeping government open and continuing our negotiations on the many priorities involved in this debate. Common sense tells me that we can find a solution to the problems if we work at it, but if we allow ourselves to escape from the process today, we’ll be back in the same position next week and the week after and the week after that. Let’s keep the pressure on until we can resolve our differences.”
Click here to view Sen. Moran’s full remarks.
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Mr. President, when we complete our work today on this issue of FISA, we will be consumed by the issue of the continuing resolution. The need for continued appropriations to keep government functions available to the American people. And I come with a suggestion which I think is based not on politics but upon common sense and perhaps just good business aspect of getting our work done. And my suggestion to my colleagues is that we do not shut down the government. I think the outcome of that is not good and I can list the reasons. I’ve had constituents from time to time tell me, “shut her down, it wouldn’t matter to me,” but I can list the circumstances in which it really does matter to every-day folks in Kansas and across the country. And at the same time force us to do work that we seem seemingly unwilling or unable to complete.
There is a whole list of things that are pending, and they’ve been pending a long time. You and I serve on the appropriations committee and one of things that I think we share is the desire to see that the appropriations process works. And that means that we would do a budget. The Budget Committee would do a budget, the Senate and House would approve the budget. We’d do 12 appropriation bills to fill in the budget space. And we would then be able to prioritize spending; we could increase, reduce or eliminate spending; and we could again send a message to agencies, departments, and cabinets that we have the ability to determine how much money they have to spend, and therefore have the opportunity to influence decisions that are made that affect the American people through the bureaucracy, though the administration in such significant ways.
So the goal here is to keep government functioning – no shutdown – but also to have the discipline necessary to put an appropriations process in place, get us out of a CR. Immigration from DACA to boarder security is certainly a topic for conversation in Congress and negotiations are apparently ongoing issues that need to be resolved. If we are going to make fixes to our immigration system, now is better than later. If border security is important, now is better than later to improve border security. If certainty in people’s lives is important, now is better than later.
Many of us have a concern that we are not adequately funding the defense side. We face many threats from China in the Pacific to Russia and its intrusion from cyber issues that affect our national security to terrorism and the Middle East. If additional money is necessary for our intelligence capabilities and for our national defense, now is better than later. And what may happen here is that we will pass a continuing resolution that takes us weeks into the future and operate under a continuing resolution, or if that’s not possible, nothing may pass for several days and the so-called government shutdown would occur. Here’s what I would ask us to do: let us do a continuing resolution for a day or so at a time, keeping government open. And while we do that, that puts the pressure on negotiations to occur to resolve the variety of issues that are out there today that in all likelihood will be attached to a final resolution. And the question is, do we do it now? Do we force those negotiations to occur and resolution of those issues to happen? Do we force that today by being in a continuing resolution that is a very short period of time? Or do we give ourselves another month to allow the conversations to continue in which in all likelihood if history is any indication a month from now we will be talking about, well, we need another CR while we continue.
The issues are important that are before us, and congress has the habit of delaying resolutions of issues until the moment of crisis arrives. My point: keep the pressure on us today. Do not let us walk away from here now without keeping government open, but do not let us leave the Senate and the Congress until we have resolved the issues in front of us from health care to immigration, from funding, from national defense to domestic spending, to issues related to disaster. The senator who presides today is a senator from Florida. Whether or not we do disaster assistance that is in need as a result of the hurricanes that have caused tremendous damage in Texas and Florida and Puerto Rico. If disaster relief is needed, it’s needed now, not later. So, Mr. President, I raise this topic. I’ve had this conversation with many of my colleagues, and I encourage us to continue to resolve our differences today – they will not be easier tomorrow – and make certain we have an opportunity for us to then deal with the important issues that are still ahead of us outside of any agreement that might be reached in the next several days. Deal with issues that are important. What I would describe as we will be dealing with issues that are normally important to us in May in June will be that May and June will be occupied by the things we should’ve resolved now. And in May and June, we’ll be doing the things we should have done today and will not be taking care of the July issues. Common sense tells me that we can find a solution to the problems if we work at it, but if we allow ourselves to escape from the process today, tomorrow, if we return home, we’ll be back in the same position next week and the week after and the week after that and the week after that that we’re in today.
Mr. President, it is just a simple plea that the United States Senate exhibit some common sense, some good business practices, resolve our differences now, and then let’s take on the next issues that are so important to our country. With that, Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I would note the absence of a quorum.
VIDEO: Sen. Moran Questions Panelists During Hearing to Examine Extremist Propaganda on Social Media
Jan 18 2018
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance and Data Security – questioned executives from Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and the Foreign Policy Research Institute on the steps social media platforms are taking to combat the spread of extremist propaganda over the internet during a Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee hearing entitled, “Terrorism and Social Media: #IsBigTechDoingEnough?”.
“In the 21st Century, fighting terrorism online is often about having more information, acquiring that information sooner and responding to that information effectively,” said Sen. Moran. “This hearing provided helpful insight into how large internet companies are proactively seeking industry-wide solutions to eliminate the harmful extremist propaganda that continues to plague the internet ecosystem. While social media companies provide an open platform for productive thoughts and ideas to be shared across the globe, there have been demonstrated abuses of this freedom by terrorist organizations using these platforms for recruitment. I am pleased these companies are taking innovative approaches to combat violent propaganda, including the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to more quickly and accurately identify problematic material and increase coordination throughout the industry to identify best practices.”
Witnesses included Facebook Head of Global Policy Management Monika Bickert, YouTube Global Head of Public Policy and Government Relations Juniper Downs, Twitter Director of Public Policy and Philanthropy for the U.S. & Canada Carlos Monje, and Foreign Policy Research Institute Robert A. Fox Fellow Clinton Watts.
Highlights:
Sen. Moran (3:27): “What evidence, if any, do you see that terrorist organizations are changing their behavior as a result of what you’re doing?”
Mr. Watts (3:42): “In some of their forums right now, they are trying to find a platform where they can go in a secure fashion, communicate, and, you know, push their propaganda around the world. So they’re actively seeking new platforms and I think your question is a great one, which is, ‘How do we help these small companies that are developing new social media applications, who don’t have the capabilities in terms of security, ward this off?’ And I don’t think there’s a good answer for that question, but they are seeking a new home, they just haven’t found it yet.”
Click here to watch Sen. Moran’s full remarks. Click here to watch the full hearing.
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) this morning joined CNBC’s Squawk Box to discuss his support for returning to the full Appropriations process in order to prioritize spending, rather than relying on short-term continuing resolutions (CRs) to fund the government. He also discussed this morning’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing entitled, “Terrorism and Social Media: Is Big Tech Doing Enough?” and his return to the Senate Banking Committee, which today voted in support of Jay Powell to chair the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
Joe Kernen (3:40): “Both sides use immigration as sort of a political football to highlight worries about terrorism, the people that want to end chain migration and lotteries, they say that, I don’t know, most of the incidents that have happened have been perpetrated by individuals that got here that way. Others say ‘not so.’ What’s the right middle ground there, how do we solve, where do you think we’re going to go? Will the government stay open?”
Sen. Moran (4:19): “We ought to have a continuing resolution, not shut down government, but we ought to do it for a very short period of time – a day or two – and stay here and resolve these differences. Because not only are we talking about DACA and immigration, the attempt to resolve those issues which are very important, but also disaster assistance, the list is long… CHIP, the program for healthcare, the Collins-Nelson bill. We ought not delay these things until March. I’m a member of the Appropriations Committee as well and I don’t want us to be back here in February with another continuing resolution. We need to get out of the CR business and get to doing 12 appropriations bills. This is where we can prioritize spending, we can reduce spending, and perhaps most importantly we can rein in agencies, departments and bureaucrats with directions about how the money can be spent.”
Sen. Moran (5:14): “Congress every once in a while, we get some credit these days and it’s perhaps one of our greater successes – reining in regulations. We’ve done that via CRA, a congressional process by which you can reject administration regulations, and we can only do that in a very narrow path. Where we can do that every year, every day is in appropriations by taking away money that comes from bad behavior or bad ideas. We need to get out of the CR and get into an appropriations process again.”
Click here to watch Sen. Moran’s interview on YouTube.
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Sen. Moran: “I have been working closely, in my view, with the Chairman, the Ranking Member, other members of this committee, those in the VA that you designated for me to work with and with the White House to make certain that the future of community care for veterans works and works well veterans and the providers who serve those veterans.”
Sen. Moran: “It is of upmost importance to me to reform Choice and to pass the right policies that will work for veterans in accessing healthcare that they deserve. It is also critical that members of Congress continue to push for a change in the VA culture to promote implementation of policies directed by Congress instead of VA, often narrowing the scope and thwarting the intent of Congress. This is in fact the conversation that you and I had, almost exclusively, during your confirmation hearing in February of 2017.”
Sen. Moran: “Pushing for a culture that transforms the VA, in my view, we have to hold you and other VA leaders accountable. In my view too often, in commitments and pledges that are made to this committee and to individual members regarding legislative efforts on behalf of our veterans, the follow up, the experience, is typical of what I’ve found with implementation of Congressionally-passed legislation: the VA changes course and it thwarts the intent of Congress. You and I had this conversation during your confirmation hearing.”
Sen. Moran: “On numerous occasions, you and I have met in my office. We have had numerous telephone conversations. And in those meetings and in those telephone conversations you expressed support for access standards in the eligibility of Choice reform. In every instance in my view, you led me to believe that you and I were on the same page. What I remember you saying is this: the need for “specificity” in legislation is there, and then I quote you, “if it’s left to the Reg process, nothing in the VA will change.” You told me that.”
Sen. Moran: “I learned, though, that you have said something quite different to the Chairman and Ranking Member, and I am of the opinion that our inability to reach an agreement is in significant part related to your ability to speak out of both sides of your mouth, double-talk. My understanding is that others have had this experience and there is a shared frustration about this circumstance… You have been sworn to give testimony today, I am looking for a straightforward answer, a yes or no would be good – do you believe that the eligibility criteria to determine if a veteran can receive care in their community ought to be explicitly linked to the access standards?”
Sec. Shulkin: “Of course I believe that eligibility criteria should be explicitly linked to access standards, and I believe that those access standards need to be determined by the VA.”
Sen. Moran: “And Mr. Chairman, then, let me ask the Secretary, you support the access standards that are in our bill. You’ve told me that. True?”
Sec. Shulkin: “I support the access standards that are in the bill that the Senate committee passed 14-1.”
Sen. Moran: “And those access standards are very similar. The issue is whether they are then tied to eligibility. Why would you not tie the access standards to eligibility? Why have access standards if they don’t matter in who is eligible for community care?”
Sec. Shulkin: “Senator Moran, first of all I applaud your efforts to get this right. I think it is grossly unfair to make the characterizations that you’ve made of me and I’m disappointed that you would do that. But I think that you have… I do not disagree with where you want to get to. I do believe that it is our job to give veterans more choice about how and where they get their healthcare. I think the issue is is that I am trying to do this in a way that will work for veterans and work for VA. I’ve seen, as you said before, Congress pass legislation that makes it more complicated and that makes it not work for veterans. And what I am trying to do is give you my best advice about how this works. The best way that I know how to do it is the way that the committee, 14-1, passed their vote, and I do believe that because of your efforts we can make those eligibility criteria, those access standards, clear to veterans so they understand them – that should be our goal – and to make sure that they do have choice based upon their clinical needs of their condition. That’s what you do in a healthcare system. That’s what I’m driving to get at. I don’t believe that we are at a far way position, here. We’re now talking about the best way to implement what we all want for veterans, which is the best care and giving them the most choice that they can get in that care.”
Sen. Moran: “Mr. Secretary, I’m sorry that you’re disappointed in my approach to this hearing today. I chose my words intentionally. I believe it to be the case. I think you tell me one thing and you tell others something else, and that’s incompatible with our ability to reach an agreement and to work together. I intend to be a member of Congress who holds you accountable for what you tell me. I hope the next step is, the Chairman indicated that the White House was sending language. I certainly would welcome a conversation, a discussion among members of this committee, the Ranking Member and the Chairman, the White House and you. This is, as you say, not that difficult. But it is an important issue. It’s not one that’s just a matter of a few words. It matters in the result that we get for accountability at the VA.”
