McDonald confirmed as new VA secretary

Robert McDonald, a West Point graduate and former CEO of Proctor and Gamble, has been confirmed as the next secretary of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.

President Barack Obama praised the Senate’s unanimous decision.

“I applaud the overwhelming, bipartisan confirmation of Bob McDonald as our next Secretary of Veterans Affairs,” he said in a statement. “As a veteran himself and a proud member of a military family, Bob is deeply committed to serving our veterans and their families. And as an executive with decades of private-sector experience, he is uniquely equipped to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs, and to help change the way the VA does business.”

Senator John Boozman (R-AR), a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, also praised the new secretary.

“The Department of Veterans Affairs has serious challenges that need to be overcome,” Boozman said in a press release. “I am encouraged by Secretary McDonald’s background in business management and dedicated service to our country, and I believe that he is the right person to lead VA in a new direction to fulfill its mission. I look forward to working with him to ensure our veterans receive the care, services and attention they earned.”

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and a member of the 2014 veterans’ conference, said in a press release that McDonald has the “skills and integrity” to enact much-needed reforms at the VA.

“The VA is faced with many hurdles that it must overcome," Brown said. “It’s imperative that Bob McDonald enacts reforms that hold senior-level VA officials accountable for mismanagement, while taking steps to address system-wide shortages in doctors and nurses. Veterans who have served this country should not have to wait to see a doctor. … These hurdles are not insurmountable, and I am confident Bob McDonald will meet these challenges head-on.”