A Democratic senator is putting holds on VA nominees to protest Trump's
plans to cut its workforce
[April 01, 2025]
By STEPHEN GROVES
WASHINGTON (AP) — Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego announced Tuesday he will
block the confirmation of top leaders at the Department of Veterans
Affairs, raising the stakes in Democrats' bid to get the Trump
administration to back off plans to cut jobs from the sprawling agency
that serves millions of military veterans.
Gallego, a Democrat and Marine Corps veteran, made the announcement just
hours before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs was scheduled to
hear testimony from three nominees for the VA who are military veterans
themselves. It marked a significant escalation in the Democrat's effort
to counter President Donald Trump's plans to slash federal agencies and
a sharply partisan move on a committee that has often been marked by
cooperation between Republicans and Democrats.
“Talking to veterans, people that I served with as well as seeing some
of what's happening in Arizona, I decided that whatever tool I have to
fix the situation, I'm going to use it. And this is one of the few tools
I have at this point," Gallego told The Associated Press.
The holds — a maneuver used on occasion in the Senate — means that it is
impossible for the chamber to move quickly to confirm the nominees and
would potentially have to tie up hours or days of floor time to advance
each nominee.
There are 13 Senate-confirmed positions at the VA, according to the
Partnership for Public Service. Two of those — VA Secretary Doug Collins
and deputy secretary Paul Lawrence — have already been confirmed. Trump
has made nominations for five other positions, while six have not yet
received a nominee.
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Sen. Tommy Tuberville, an Alabama Republican, in 2023 put a hold on
the promotions of hundreds of top military officers to protest
Pentagon policy on abortions, but under pressure from his own party,
eventually dropped most of his blockade.
Gallego acknowledged that his decision carried some risk. He said
that he had hoped for collaboration with Collins, the Cabinet
secretary, and even voted for his confirmation. But since then, he
said he has struggled to get answers from the VA's leadership.
The VA is in the midst of plans to cut its workforce by over 80,000
people. That would take it to 2019 staffing levels of just under
400,000 — before it had to provide benefits to veterans impacted by
burn pits and exposure to other toxins under the 2022 PACT Act.
While Collins has pledged that veterans' benefits won't be affected,
Democrats are pushing back on the plans and warning that it comes at
the expense of care for those who served in the military. Gallego
pointed to one VA hospital in Arizona that he said had received a
directive to cut 15% of its staff.
“As someone who actually has used that VA, you know I had services
there done in the past. There’s no way they’re going to be able to
cut 15% of the workforce, and it's not going to impact veterans'
benefits," he said.
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