{"id":30204,"date":"2019-10-17T15:34:42","date_gmt":"2019-10-17T15:34:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/10\/17\/former-va-secretary-details-dysfunction-chaos-within-the-trump-administration\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T06:35:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T06:35:18","slug":"former-va-secretary-details-dysfunction-chaos-within-the-trump-administration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/10\/17\/former-va-secretary-details-dysfunction-chaos-within-the-trump-administration\/","title":{"rendered":"Former VA secretary details dysfunction, chaos within the Trump administration"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Former Veterans Affairs Secretary <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2017\/02\/14\/senate-confirms-david-shulkin-as-new-va-secretary\/\" target=_blank>David Shulkin<\/a> doesn\u2019t want you to think <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marinecorpstimes.com\/veterans\/2019\/10\/16\/trump-mulled-order-to-close-parts-of-va-health-system-shulkin-says-in-new-book\/\" target=_blank>his new book<\/a> is an attack on President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But he does want you to know the many levels of dysfunction and chaos he faced while <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/2019\/01\/17\/watchdog-finds-operational-ethical-violations-with-security-staff-for-top-va-officials\/\" target=_blank>working in that administration<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI was aware of a lot of the division and chaos in the country and in the administration, and in a lot of ways I was naively keeping my head down, believing I could operate outside of that,\u201d said Shulkin, who outlines his nearly three years of public service within VA in the new biography \u201cIt Shouldn\u2019t Be This Hard to Serve Your Country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI thought I could avoid this, and I was wrong. I got sucked into the same type of swirling political gamesmanship that was happening in other parts of the administration. And unfortunately, even veterans issues get politicized.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/veterans\/2018\/03\/28\/shulkin-out-trump-fires-va-secretary-after-weeks-of-controversy\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"212\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18080702094696.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Shulkin out: Trump fires VA secretary after weeks of controversy<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Shulkin, once seen as among Trump&#039;s least controversial Cabinet officials, had drawn criticism in recent weeks for his handling of a travel scandal.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The book, being released next week amid the ongoing House impeachment investigation into Trump, has already drawn attention for Shulkin\u2019s revelations that top administration officials considered closing down some poor-performing VA facilities and for Shulkin\u2019s own account of his surprise nomination to the top VA post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the volume also contains hundreds of pages detailing infighting among Shulkin\u2019s leadership team and White House political appointees, many of whom the former secretary said were allowed to operate unchecked and sabotaged his work to advance their own policy agendas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For months before his firing over Twitter, Shulkin was besieged by accusations he improperly used his position to take his wife on an overseas business trip and improperly accepted free tickets to a Wimbledon tennis match. An internal investigation also criticized how his personal security detail was managed, including performing some personal errands for Shulkin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shulkin in the book details those scandals but also notes that investigators found no serious violations with the moves. What ultimately lead to his dismissal, he said, was constant undermining of his work by opponents within VA and the White House, many of whom he unsuccessfully tried to sideline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He details VA public affairs staffers issuing statements without his knowledge, White House officials calling veterans policy meetings without inviting him, and staffers \u201csetting me up\u201d to appear out of touch or out of step with the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During one meeting in March 2017 \u2014 just a few weeks before his firing \u2014 Shulkin said he complained about the situation to Trump and was told he had to find a way to get along with his opponents because \u201cthey\u2019ll cause trouble from the outside if they go.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cTo me it was clear,\u201d he writes in the book. \u201cI was pushed out of VA because of a partisan desire to get rid of me and any other obstacle standing in the way of privatizing VA.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shulkin was an advocate for legislation to dramatically expand options for veterans to receive free health care outside VA at private-sector clinics. That plan eventually became the VA Mission Act, passed into law a few months after Shulkin\u2019s firing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the book he hails the passage as an important step forward but also warns that forces within the administration are still pushing to go further, potentially pulling funding and resources from VA facilities. Shulkin said he has not spoken directly to current VA Secretary Robert Wilkie in recent months, but worries he faces the same internal pressures and confusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/veterans\/2018\/03\/30\/shulkin-to-military-times-ill-keep-speaking-out-against-va-injustices\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18066579870562.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Shulkin to Military Times: I\u2019ll keep speaking out against VA \u2018injustices\u2019<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The former VA secretary insists that &quot;if I don\u2019t continue to speak out on behalf of veterans and VA employees, who is going to?\u201d<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cCalling the first few months of the Trump administration disorganized, even chaotic, would be kind,\u201d he writes. \u201cAbsent regular meetings with the White House, each Cabinet secretary pretty much found his or her own way of communicating with the president and getting things done.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shulkin asserts that the problems he encountered are not unique to the Trump administration, but instead to the culture of Washington that has developed in recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI strongly believe that we as a society have allowed public service to become far too unpleasant,\u201d he writes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen we were recruiting for the VA, many wonderfully qualified people expressed a sincere desire to learn more about joining the team \u2026 Once they learned about the limitations on outside activities, the number of regulations and restrictions, the reputational risks, the toxic political culture and the low salary, they refused to take the leap.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shulkin, who previously served as VA\u2019s top health official under President Barack Obama, argues that the federal government \u201cneeds to transform into a more welcoming environment for talented individuals who can bring significant real-world experience\u201d into the public jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shulkin now runs a new healthcare consulting firm, and said he does not regret his decision to serve as VA secretary (the first non-veteran ever to do so), even after the anxiety and frustration that came with the experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI would not only do it all again, but I will continue to advocate for veterans for the rest of my life,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But he also warned that many others may not feel the same way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe environment of public service right now is that people feel it\u2019s OK to level personal attacks against others,\u201d he said. \u201cThat is an absolute formula for failure for the future of public service.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>David Shulkin says he doesn&#8217;t want to attack the president, but does see big changes needed to improved public service.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":61096,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":19,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[100,23,93,12,25,68,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3334],"class_list":["post-30204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-pentagon-congress","category-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"K6733QG2RNFBTPTGTBINWUONPE","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/10\/17\/former-va-secretary-details-dysfunction-chaos-within-the-trump-administration\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Former VA secretary details dysfunction, chaos within the Trump administration - Army Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"David Shulkin says he doesn&#039;t want to attack the president, but does see big changes needed to improved public service.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Former VA secretary details dysfunction, chaos within the Trump administration\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"David Shulkin says he doesn&#039;t want to attack the president, but does see big changes needed to improved public service.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" 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