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Have some thoughts on the VA with the selection of Denis McDonough as secretary. Worked on this issue quite a bit during my time in DC...
First of all, the VA is a terribly flawed organization that will never truly be "fixed." It can be made marginally better and less corrupt through quality management and strict accountability from Congress, but it's never going to be wonderful.
One thing the last VA scandal taught us is that career VA employees / bureaucrats really can wait out the storm. During those days, we were successful in seeing one top manager fired (Talton) and a regional manager run off but dozens of known problem employees remained.
I actually met McDonough at the Army-Navy game in 2015 at the height of the VA scandal when he was White House COS. I remember being surprised / impressed at the level of detail he knew about the Central Alabama situation and @RepMarthaRoby's work on the issue. Stood out to me.
I know there is pushback from McDonough not being a veteran, but it always seemed to me what you need the most in a VA secretary is being a good manager who isn't intimated by the enormity of the challenge and is willing to rack up small, incremental victories.
For that, I think McDonough is a good choice. Again, I hate to say it, but the VA is never going to be a wonderful organization. But good management can make it less bad, and that ultimately means veterans' lives saved. So best of luck to him.
