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Today, Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.), the Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, delivered the following opening remarks, as prepared, at the Committee’s first oversight hearing of the 118th Congress:

Good afternoon.

Thank you all for being here.

Welcome to the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs’ first oversight hearing for the 118th Congress.

I am honored to be the Chairman of this important Committee, leading a group of great members.

Every one of these members, Republican and Democrat, is here because they believe in President Lincoln’s promise.

We all have a responsibility to every man and woman who has served in our Armed Forces.

To craft laws that deliver veterans the care and benefits they have earned.

This starts by overseeing V.A. to make sure those laws are carried out as intended.

Unfortunately, V.A. has at times fallen short of its promise to veterans.

Last year, Inspector General Michael Missal – who is here with us today – put it plainly.

While discussing the tragic incidents at V.A. medical centers in Arkansas and West Virginia, Mr. Missal stated these failures were the consequences of:

Quote – “disengaged leadership and the dangerous culture that is fostered when leaders are not attentive to, or invested in, their staff and the veterans they serve” – End Quote.

Mr. Missal, those are powerful words.

They ring in my ears.

They echo in this room.

And I hope they keep those failed leaders up at night.

Sadly, these are not the only instances of failed leadership.

Recently we have seen:

-Veterans denied access to community care, in direct defiance of MISSION Act guidelines;

-Poor care coordination and delayed diagnoses resulting in low quality care for veterans;

-V.A. improperly rejecting 31,000 disability claims submitted through its own website;

-Senior leaders ignoring disciplinary recommendations and failing to hold management accountable;

-The E.H.R. Modernization program is on its fourth director in five years, and continues to burn money and disrupt care;

-And V.A. prioritizing employee productivity at the expense of veterans receiving compensation and pension benefits.

Strong, engaged, and thoughtful leadership is the single most important factor needed to successfully run an organization of any size.

Be it a family-owned trucking company, like the one I used to run, or one of the largest Departments in the Federal Government.

I am confident that every member on this committee agrees with me.

All the examples I just listed are areas where leadership failed.

However, they are not the end of the story.

We can – and we must – learn from these failures to deliver a V.A. that is worthy of veterans’ service to our great country.

That is how we will drive V.A. toward successes, like:

Medical facilities empowering employees to identify and address issues, without fear of punishment;

Helping over two million veterans secure housing with a V.A. home loan over the last two years;

Saving over 200,000 veterans from having their houses foreclosed on during record high inflation caused by the Biden Administration;

And ensuring that veterans receive a dignified burial.

These are all successes that we can be proud of.

But unfortunately, they are not yet the norm.

V.A. is simply not where it should be.

And bringing V.A. into the 21st century for veterans is my number one priority.

With engaged and accountable leadership on every level, V.A. can get to where our veterans need it to be.

That starts today.

We can get there with:

tough, but fair, oversight;

common sense legislation;

and a commitment from V.A. leadership to always put veterans at the forefront of their decision-making process.

With that, I thank our witnesses for being here today.

I now recognize Ranking Member Takano for his opening comments.