Woefully Unqualified

This past week, Donald Trump fired David Shulkin, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The latter promptly fired off a biting editorial that appeared in the New York Times (link here) and revealed the real reason for the President's action: Shulkin refused to go along with the administration's attempt to privatize veterans' healthcare, a move that would increase costs for taxpayers, worsen medical care for vets, and line the pockets of big-money GOP donors.

Shortly after Shulkin was pushed out, Trump nominated his personal White House physician to fill the Secretary of Veterans Affairs slot, an announcement which shocked Washington because the doctor, who might have excellent medical skills, has utterly no administrative experience. As the second-largest government agency with more than 360,000 employees, Veterans Affairs requires a skilled medical executive.

The Washington Post reported (link here) that the White House never even consulted Republican Senators about the potential nomination, which is standard proceedure any time a cabinet seat needs filling. As well, the nominee wasn't even vetted inside the White House, another standard and necessary procedure that was discarded.

The real reason for Trump's enthusiasm for his unqualified nominee is obvious: the President's personal physician flattered the President by giving him a glowing medical report. In that, he conveniently overlooked mentioning that the President was obviously obese and had lied about both his weight and height to hide that fact.

This will not end well.