VA head changed records to hide travel boondoggle, report alleges

President Trump’s executive branch chiefs came under renewed criticism this week over travel expenses billed to the government. In the most recent instance, the head of the Department of Veterans Affairs was accused of a cover-up that involved altering emails relating to a trip that cost taxpayers more than $120,000.

Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin had his staff alter an email and made false statements to justify a 10-day European vacation with his wife last year, according to a report from VA Inspector General Michael J. Missal. According to the Washington Post, Shulkin also improperly accepted tickets to the Wimbledon tennis tournament worth thousands of dollars. Shulkin had his staff say that he was accepting an award on the trip to justify bringing his wife, which contributed to the total cost of $122,334.

Shulkin called the portrayal of the trip “entirely inaccurate,” adding that it “reeks of an agenda.” This did not stop Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Colo., from calling for Shulkin’s resignation.

“It’s exactly corruption and abuses like this that doesn’t help our veterans,” wrote Coffman, who served in the Marines. “Secretary Shulkin must RESIGN now. President Trump ran on accountability, it starts here.”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/va-head-changed-records-hide-travel-boondoggle-report-alleges-183318232.html