{"id":39240,"date":"2020-01-16T14:47:23","date_gmt":"2020-01-16T14:47:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/01\/16\/va-lawmakers-trade-barbs-after-sexual-assault-claim-from-congressional-staffer\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T07:11:52","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T07:11:52","slug":"va-lawmakers-trade-barbs-after-sexual-assault-claim-from-congressional-staffer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/veterans\/2020\/01\/16\/va-lawmakers-trade-barbs-after-sexual-assault-claim-from-congressional-staffer\/","title":{"rendered":"VA, lawmakers trade barbs after sexual assault claim from congressional staffer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Top Veterans Affairs officials are criticizing a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/09\/26\/lawmaker-demands-overhaul-of-va-anti-harassment-policies-after-staffer-reports-assault-at-veterans-hospital\/\" target=_blank>key congressional staffer<\/a> for reporting an \u201cunsubstantiated\u201d sexual assault incident at a VA medical center, saying the accusation could discourage public trust in the institution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But congressional leaders say VA leadership are the ones undermining faith in the institution, by attacking a victim instead of working to make their facilities accountable and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/05\/02\/task-force-to-highlight-forgotten-and-invisible-women-veterans\/\" target=_blank>safe for women veterans. <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The showdown comes amid <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/11\/25\/veterans-suicide-prevention-proposal-turns-into-bitter-fight-between-congress-and-va\/\" target=_blank>increasing tensions between the House Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee and department officials<\/a>, who have sparred publicly over a host of issues in the last few months.<\/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\/09\/26\/lawmaker-demands-overhaul-of-va-anti-harassment-policies-after-staffer-reports-assault-at-veterans-hospital\/\" 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\/DSC_6403.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\">Lawmaker demands overhaul of VA anti-harassment policies after staffer reports assault at veterans hospital<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A staffer from a congressional task force on women veterans was attacked during a medical visit to the facility.<\/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 latest fight dates back to last September, when Andrea Goldstein \u2014 a reserve Navy intelligence officer and the lead staffer on the committee\u2019s Women Veterans Task Force \u2014 said she was groped and body checked by an unknown man while waiting in the front atrium of the Washington DC VA Medical Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The man, said Goldstein, also propositioned her as he made the unwanted advances. Goldstein said the incident happened in a public area, but employees at the hospital did not intervene and were slow to react when she reported the crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA officials at the time promised a full investigation. On Wednesday, officials from the VA Inspector General\u2019s office closed the case with no charges filed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a letter to committee leaders the same day, VA Secretary Robert Wilkie took exception to criticism leveled by several lawmakers over a lack of training for VA employees on sexual harassment and assault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe believe that VA is a safe place for veterans to enter and receive care and services, but the unsubstantiated claims raised by you and your staff could deter our veterans from seeking the care they need and deserve,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEven prior to this allegation, VA was conducting education of staff on the proper handling of all forms of harassment. We will continue these efforts.\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\/11\/25\/veterans-suicide-prevention-proposal-turns-into-bitter-fight-between-congress-and-va\/\" 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_19086730122538.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\">Veterans suicide prevention proposal turns into bitter fight between Congress and VA<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Plan for community mental health grants for veterans has devolved into partisan fighting and anger.<\/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\">Committee leaders called that response offensive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen my staffer bravely came forward in September, she did so in the spirit of wanting other women veterans to feel safe,\u201d Committee Chairman Mark Takano, D-Calif., said in a statement. \u201cBut the secretary\u2019s flippant letter is only further evidence to my staffer and others that coming forward is punished, speaking out retaliated against, and that a hostile culture at VA is tolerated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a separate exchange, VA Inspector General Michael Missal criticized Wilkie for mischaracterizing his office\u2019s findings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI specifically told (senior VA staff) that the investigation had been closed without charges and that no other characterization could or should be made regarding the outcome of the investigation,\u201d he wrote. \u201cReaching a decision to close the investigation with no criminal charges does not mean the underlying allegation is unsubstantiated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to VA\u2019s own surveys, about one in four women veterans visiting department health care facilities has experienced some form of sexual harassment or abuse. Department officials have pledged to fix that problem.<\/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\/05\/02\/task-force-to-highlight-forgotten-and-invisible-women-veterans\/\" 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\/5245556.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\">Task force to highlight \u2018forgotten\u2019 and &#8216;invisible\u2019 women veterans<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A new House task force will look at the challenges facing women veterans at VA an in society at large.<\/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 Rep. Julia Brownley, D-Calif. and chairwoman of the House panel\u2019s health subcommittee, said the insensitive reaction to Goldstein\u2019s case shows \u201cthe cultural problem that pervades VA\u201d regarding misogyny and apathy towards women veterans. .<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe secretary should apologize and use this as a teachable moment to be a leader in stopping sexual assault at VA facilities,\u201d she said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf we\u2019ve learned anything from the #MeToo movement, it is that being heard and being supported for coming forward is an essential first step to stopping sexual assault and to ending the unfortunate culture that allows it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Missal said in his letter than despite the lack of charges in this case, \u201cno one should be discouraged from reporting an alleged crime to the office of the inspector general.\u201d House members have promised continued oversight on the issue in the months to come.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>VA leaders labeled the claim unsubstantiated, but Inspector General officials called that a wrong characterization of the case.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":31102,"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":[101,23,89,12,26,62,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3222],"class_list":["post-39240","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":"HLMAKY7YZFGRXF7ZMHJZQEIOYE","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2020\/01\/16\/va-lawmakers-trade-barbs-after-sexual-assault-claim-from-congressional-staffer\/","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>VA, lawmakers trade barbs after sexual assault claim from congressional staffer - Navy Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"VA leaders labeled the claim unsubstantiated, but Inspector General officials called that a wrong characterization of the case.\" \/>\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=\"VA, lawmakers trade barbs after sexual assault claim from congressional staffer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"VA leaders labeled the claim unsubstantiated, but Inspector General officials called that a wrong characterization of the case.\" \/>\n<meta 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