U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Photogra
Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie on Monday introduced the abrupt firing of his No. 2 on the VA, James Byrne, after lower than 5 months formally on the job.
“Right now, I dismissed VA Deputy Secretary James Byrne because of lack of confidence in Mr. Byrne’s capacity to hold out his duties,” Wilkie mentioned in a short, cryptic assertion posted on the Division of Veterans Affairs web site. “This determination is efficient instantly.”
Byrne was solely confirmed within the Senate on Sept. 11 by an 81-11 vote. His departure continues a development of management turmoil at President Donald Trump’s Division of Veterans Affairs. The president’s first VA Secretary, David Shulkin, was compelled out after questions emerged about taxpayer-funded travels, and his decide to interchange Shulkin, then-White Home doctor Ronny Jackson, withdrew from consideration amid studies of misconduct on the job.