{"id":33508,"date":"2018-06-26T19:03:43","date_gmt":"2018-06-26T19:03:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:48:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:48:25","slug":"senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/","title":{"rendered":"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WASHINGTON \u2014 Key lawmakers on the Senate Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee don\u2019t expect allegations regarding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2018\/05\/30\/wilkie-steps-down-as-acting-va-secretary-top-deputy-retires\/\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Veterans Affairs Secretary nominee Robert Wilkie<\/a>\u2019s past political views to upend his confirmation process, but they do expect debate on the issues during his public hearing this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Tuesday, in a profile of the Wilkie, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/trumps-va-pick-a-longtime-aide-to-polarizing-politicians-has-defended-extreme-views\/2018\/06\/26\/d74affde-69d8-11e8-9e38-24e693b38637_story.html?utm_term=.80c605dfc78e\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\" data-original-title=\"\" aria-describedby=\"popover397860\">the Washington Post<\/a> noted a number of controversial stances in the longtime bureaucrat\u2019s past, including advocacy for former Sen. Jesse Helms that had racist undertones and active work with the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a group that defends public displays of the Confederate symbols.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wilkie, a North Carolina native, also worked closely with former Sen. Trent Lott and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/off-duty\/movies-video-games\/2016\/02\/13\/this-is-what-donald-rumsfeld-wants-inscribed-on-his-gravestone\/\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\" data-original-title=\"\">former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld<\/a>, and was seen as a vocal advocate for some of their controversial policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The allegations date back several decades in some cases, but drew concerns from some veterans advocates given the high-profile nature of the Cabinet post.<\/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\/06\/20\/three-looming-questions-for-robert-wilkies-va-confirmation-hearing\/\" 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=\"205\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18138650153010.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\">3 looming questions for Robert Wilkie\u2019s VA confirmation hearing<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Trump&#039;s latest nominee for the top VA job will face tough questioning from senators next week, despite wide support for his bid.<\/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\">But committee chairman Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., said Wilkie discussed those issues with him weeks ago, and the senator considers it a non-controversy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAny time you find out about things ahead of time instead of after the fact, you know you have a good person,\u201d Isakson said. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing in there I see, unless you want to make something out of the history of our country and where he came from, there\u2019s no issue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s nothing to preclude him from doing a good job or working for veterans.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Committee ranking member Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., said he expects the issue to be a major point of conversation in Wednesday\u2019s confirmation hearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think he\u2019s qualified and a good guy,\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019ll have an opportunity to answer those questions. Many of them happened 20 years ago. We\u2019ll delve in a bit, and I think he\u2019s a straight-up guy who will give us an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wilkie, 55, currently serves as the Pentagon\u2019s under secretary for personnel and readiness and was confirmed to that post without controversy by the Senate Armed Services Committee last fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He worked as acting VA secretary for two months following the sudden firing of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/veterans\/2018\/03\/30\/shulkin-to-military-times-ill-keep-speaking-out-against-va-injustices\/\" title=\"\" target=\"_blank\">former VA Secretary David Shulkin<\/a> in March, and was tapped as the nominee after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2018\/04\/25\/latest-allegations-against-va-nominee-jackson-drunken-driving-fake-prescriptions-abusive-leadership\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson<\/a> withdrew his name from consideration for the job amid allegations of unprofessional behavior while working as White House physician. Defense officials are currently investigating those charges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wilkie is an Air Force Reserve colonel who previously spent time in the Navy Reserve. He is also the son of an Army artillery commander, and has spoken frequently about growing up on military bases and the challenges his family faced in dealing with his father\u2019s combat injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His nomination has largely been greeted with praise from veterans groups who saw him as a stabilizing force within the department in recent months. He also boasts a close relationship with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, one of Trump\u2019s most publicly popular Cabinet secretaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wilkie was on Capitol Hill Tuesday to meet with lawmakers in advance of Wednesday afternoon\u2019s confirmation hearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a message to VA staff in April, Wilkie promised to move the department to a more customer-focused philosophy and \u201cto set the standard for the millions coming into our VA and for the millions who will join the ranks down the years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Trump&#39;s reported nominee to lead the <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/DeptVetAffairs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@DeptVetAffairs<\/a>, Robert Wilkie, has ties to Confederate groups, as well as a major role in crafting the ban on transgender troops from military service. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/F0QMTyqcXD\">pic.twitter.com\/F0QMTyqcXD<\/a><\/p>&mdash; VoteVets (@votevets) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/votevets\/status\/1011650385155633152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 26, 2018<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":66549,"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":12,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,93,12,25],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3226],"class_list":["post-33508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"A7S5MWS2CFHXJNTDMDYHLAHNEI","arc_canonical_url":"\/veterans\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/","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>Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing - Marine Corps Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Marine Corps Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-06-26T19:03:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T02:48:25+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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-06-26T19:03:43+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T02:48:25+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 574,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_18177582008551.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            ],\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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing - Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-06-26T19:03:43+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T02:48:25+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/\"\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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/2018\\\/06\\\/26\\\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\\\/#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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"News\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/news\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"news\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Marine Corps - Independent News For Marines | Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/?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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Marine Corps Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/marine-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/marine-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Marine Corps Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/#\\\/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\\\/marinecorpstimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing - Marine Corps Times","description":"A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing","og_description":"A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/","og_site_name":"Marine Corps Times","article_published_time":"2018-06-26T19:03:43+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T02:48:25+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\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing","datePublished":"2018-06-26T19:03:43+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T02:48:25+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/"},"wordCount":574,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily News Roundup","Home","Middle Column","News","Newsletters"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/","name":"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing - Marine Corps Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2018-06-26T19:03:43+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T02:48:25+00:00","description":"A report just hours before his confirmation hearing found support by nominee Robert Wilkie for controversial policies and figures.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/2018\/06\/26\/senators-doubt-latest-controversies-will-derail-va-secretary-nomination\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/news\/","ad_zone":"news"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Allegations about VA secretary nominee\u2019s past expected to fuel debate during confirmation hearing"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","name":"Marine Corps Times","description":"Marine Corps - Independent News For Marines | Marine Corps Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#organization","name":"Marine Corps Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/marine-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/marine-logo-white.png","caption":"Marine Corps Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/#\/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\/marinecorpstimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_18177582008551.jpg.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Marine Corps Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33508"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33508\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82539,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33508\/revisions\/82539"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33508"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=33508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}