{"id":56382,"date":"2019-02-08T17:00:48","date_gmt":"2019-02-08T17:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T08:49:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T08:49:18","slug":"house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/","title":{"rendered":"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WASHINGTON \u2014 The House Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee is launching an investigation into whether President Donald Trump\u2019s country club friends had<a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2018\/08\/08\/democrats-demand-white-house-reveal-details-of-outside-businessmens-influence-on-va-policy\/\" target=_blank> undue influence over Veterans Affairs Department policies<\/a> or violated any laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a letter to VA officials Friday, committee <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2018\/12\/31\/incoming-chairmans-top-goal-for-2019-building-up-va-not-outside-care-programs\/\" target=\"_blank\">Chairman Mark Takano<\/a>, D-Calif., said the department needs to turn over dozens of documents by the end of the month to clarify the role of \u201cthese individuals who have not served in the U.S. military nor U.S. government, and are not accountable to veterans and the American people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The move comes amid <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/02\/07\/va-says-its-has-never-been-more-cooperative-with-congress-so-why-cant-lawmakers-get-the-answers-they-want\/\" target=_blank>increasing tension between the department and members of Congress<\/a>, and just days after President Donald Trump chastised congressional Democrats in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/congress\/2019\/02\/06\/great-nations-do-not-fight-endless-wars-trump-touts-troop-drawdowns-in-state-of-the-union\/\" target=_blank>his State of the Union address<\/a> over investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf there is going to be peace and legislation, there cannot be war and investigation,\u201d he said. \u201cIt just doesn&#8217;t work that way.\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\/08\/10\/concerns-build-over-trumps-unofficial-advisors-on-veterans-policy\/\" 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=\"176\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_17040578086966.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\">Concerns build over Trump\u2019s unofficial advisers on veterans policy<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Democrats are furious over reports that members of Trump&#039;s Florida resort may be setting VA policy in secret.<\/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 men at the center of the new VA investigation \u2014 Marvel Entertainment CEO Ike Perlmutter, primary care specialist Dr. Bruce Moskowitz and attorney Marc Sherman \u2014 are members of Trump\u2019s exclusive Mar-a-Lago club and have been dubbed the department\u2019s \u201cshadow rulers\u201d because of their high-level conversations with VA employees over the past two years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The full extent of that involvement is unclear. VA Secretary Robert Wilkie said in congressional testimony last fall that he had only cursory contact with the men and they have had no significant influence over department policy matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But a ProPublica investigation last summer revealed extensive communication between the men and VA officials in the past, including involvement in the adoption of a new 10-year, $16-billion electronic medical records overhaul and the firing of former VA Secretary David Shulkin last spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The committee has asked for all communications between the trio and VA employees, to include emails, texts and telephone records.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cTop department officials apparently treated these Mar-a-Lago members as having decision-making authority, and emails demonstrate these powerful men weighed in on candidates to lead the Veterans Health Administration and organized meetings and summits between VA and commercial entities,\u201d Takano\u2019s letter states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a statement, department spokesman Curt Cashour said that VA has already responded to multiple requests on the issue, and \u201csince most of these communications occurred under previous VA leaders, we refer you to them for further comment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He also added that \u201calthough his predecessors may have done things differently, Sec. Wilkie has been clear about how he does business. No one from outside the administration dictates VA policies or decisions. That\u2019s up to Sec. Wilkie and President Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The move comes a day after Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., set a letter directly to the three men out of frustration over months of unanswered questions from VA officials over their roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Although you reportedly had access to and influence over key agency decisions and decision-makers, you were reportedly not subject to any of the conflicts-of-interest and other ethics rules that apply to government employees,&#8221; she wrote. &#8220;As a result, I am concerned that you may have had the opportunity to profit from your arrangement, including possibly by engaging in trades or other actions to enrich yourselves.\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\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/02\/07\/va-says-its-has-never-been-more-cooperative-with-congress-so-why-cant-lawmakers-get-the-answers-they-want\/\" 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=\"208\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18178736885395.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\">VA says it has never been more cooperative with Congress. So why can\u2019t lawmakers get the answers they want?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Growing frustration between the administration&#039;s veteran program leaders and Congress could stall the legislative success they&#039;ve enjoyed in recent years.<\/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\">Takano\u2019s counterpart in the upper chamber, Senate Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., said on Thursday that he has no plans to investigate the three businessmen for now. Whether House Republicans will support the Democratic majority\u2019s information requests remains to be seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In October, VA officials refused to produce the documents, citing \u201congoing litigation alleging violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act\u201d making them \u201cnot appropriate for release at this time.\u201d That was due to an ongoing lawsuit filed by the left-leaning advocacy group VoteVets seeking to block the men from contact with VA leadership on official matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, House Democrats hold subpoena powers for the records. The committee has used that authority several times in recent years, although with near unanimous bipartisan support each time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":91934,"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-56382","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":"YY3V5ILAYBHYLEFEOGG5B4U7G4","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/","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>House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019 - Army Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.\" \/>\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=\"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Army Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-02-08T17:00:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T08:49:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-02-08T17:00:48+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T08:49:18+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 659,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Middle Column\",\n\t                \"News\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Pentagon &amp; Congress\",\n\t                \"Veterans\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019 - Army Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-02-08T17:00:48+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T08:49:18+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/08\\\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Veterans\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"veterans\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Army Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Independent News For Soldiers | Army Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Army Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/army-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/army-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Army Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019 - Army Times","description":"Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019","og_description":"Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/","og_site_name":"Army Times","article_published_time":"2019-02-08T17:00:48+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T08:49:18+00:00","author":"Leo Shane III","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Leo Shane III","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019","datePublished":"2019-02-08T17:00:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T08:49:18+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/"},"wordCount":659,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily News Roundup","Home","Middle Column","News","Newsletters","Pentagon &amp; Congress","Veterans"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/","name":"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019 - Army Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2019-02-08T17:00:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T08:49:18+00:00","description":"Democrats want clarity on the influence of a trio of outside businessmen on department policy decisions.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/08\/house-panel-opens-investigation-into-vas-shadow-rulers\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Veterans","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/","ad_zone":"veterans"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"House panel opens investigation into Trump\u2019s VA \u2018shadow rulers\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/","name":"Army Times","description":"Independent News For Soldiers | Army Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#organization","name":"Army Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/army-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/army-logo-white.png","caption":"Army Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Army Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_19037002340660.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56382"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56382\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56384,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56382\/revisions\/56384"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56382"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=56382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}