What a Joke are they serious - Veterans Benefits Administration chief suspended in relocation scam

[Guest ScareCrow]

 What a freeking scam, if anyone else had pulled this kind of crap they would have got 20 years plus $$$$$$ in fines in the club-fed. Check this out and see for yourself, nothing happens to VA employees that scam the VA system the VA just slaps them on the wrist and moves them around, WHAT-THE-HE-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS!!! How long do we have to put up with this bs anyway???

 I think that some HADIT! should be applied here and elsewhere in government, your interpretation of what I am referring too is entirely up to you, where is Tyler Durden when you need him..... Just look at that fat-b*stard parasiting our funds right into his own pocket just like a majority of VA employees and nobody is doing anything and the VA is worried about us.....

sorry, rant-off.....

 In my honest opinion, only Veterans should be allowed at the VA, I think that in and of itself this would eliminate not all but a lot of the corruption and criminal activity that we all know that the VA is currently and knowingly plagued with.

 At least the VA would be much better off with us as veterans running it as opposed to civilians from who knows where and possibly questionable backgrounds to begin with.....

 

Veterans Benefits Administration chief suspended in relocation scam

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/03/23/veterans-benefits-administration-chief-suspended-in-relocation-scam.html?intcmp=hplnws

FILE - In this Nov. 2, 2015, file photo, Department of Veterans Affairs, Principal Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits Danny Pummill, testifies at a Veterans Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP)

WASHINGTON –  The Department of Veterans Affairs is suspending the head of the Veterans Benefits Administration for allowing two lower-ranking officials to manipulate the agency's hiring system for their own gain.

Deputy VA Secretary Sloan Gibson says acting VBA chief Danny Pummill will be suspended without pay for 15 days for his role in a relocation scam that has roiled the agency for months.

Pummill failed to exercise proper oversight as Kimberly Graves and Diana Rubens forced lower-ranking managers to accept job transfers and then stepped into the vacant positions themselves, keeping their senior-level pay while reducing their responsibilities, Gibson said Tuesday.

Pummill is one of VA's five highest-ranking officials and leads VBA's employees across 56 regional offices nationwide that provide compensation and pension benefits, life insurance, home loans and other services to millions of veterans.

Under VA rules, Pummill can appeal his suspension to an independent arbiter.

Pummill was the VBA's deputy chief when Rubens and Graves implemented the job relocations, which put both of them closer to their families. Pummill replaced former VBA chief Allison Hickey, who retired as allegations against Rubens and Graves were made public.

Rubens earns $181,497 as director of the VBA's Philadelphia regional office, while Graves receives $173,949 as head of the St. Paul, Minnesota, benefits office.

Graves and Rubens were reprimanded Tuesday and had their pay cut by 10 percent. The two women were reinstated to their positions last month after administrative judges overturned their demotions.

The judges based their rulings, in part, on the fact that more senior officials such as Pummill had not been disciplined in the case. In a related action, the VA said it has reprimanded Beth McCoy, director of field operations for the VBA. Gibson said McCoy did not exercise proper judgment in taking over for Rubens as heads of field operations.

Gibson said the disciplinary actions were in the best interests of veterans and taxpayers. "Ultimately, that is what these decisions are about: getting back to the work of serving America's veterans," he said.

Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, called the actions "a weak slap on the wrist."

Accountability at the VA "is almost non-existent," Miller said. "One thing is clear: this dysfunctional status quo will never change until we eliminate arcane civil service rules that put the job security of VA bureaucrats ahead of the veterans they are charged with serving."

Edited March 23, 2016 by ScareCrow

[broncovet]

Always keep this in mind:

VA employees are always given a "presumptive".  This means everything they say is presumed truthful, absent compelling evidence to the contrary. 

However, Veteran's are never beleived about anything, we must document everything.  

This sounds exactly backwards to me.  

[stinger]

I don't disagree that veterans are a good choice for the positions. However, don't forget that they are just as human with the wrong opportunities as anybody else. Accountability is a good thing.

[Buck52]

I got to be good friends with a VA Employee...until she had enough and quit. she told me some hellacious stories behind the scenes how most employees steal/Lie  from the VA  and never once think about it.

Because they know they can and get away with it.

 

[Guest ScareCrow]

 Accountability is the foundation of any organization and without it that organization will ultimately fail as we see time and time again with great government examples of failed integrity.

 However I would put an honorably discharged veteran up against any 10 civilians in terms of integrity any day of the week and twice on Tuesday and give them the benefit of the doubt.

  Now are there some dishonest veterans that were honorably discharged, absolutely yes, some of the worst people that I have ever met were in the military; but I feel in comparison overall we as veterans have a higher integrity than most any civilians is all.

[ArNG11]

Man this crap sucks.  Even with all the news, injuries and blatant wrong doing, accountability seems to escape the evil doer's.

I often wonder who has more of the blame, the evil doers or the higher ranking officials who decide there "was no major harm to anyone, (anyone other than the Veterans and his dependents).

Blah.  There's documentation for everything so holding folks accountable should be a no brainer correct? Training records, signatures for obtaining and documenting records,  sign offs ect., etc.

Clear and unmistakable errors in processing claims, without recourse, without consequences for decisions made?  

Not that I'm advocating scapegoats or harsh punishments, but are public lashings still illegal? Just curious?

 

[Guest ScareCrow]

6 minutes ago, ArNG11 said:

Man this crap sucks.  Even with all the news, injuries and blatant wrong doing, accountability seems to escape the evil doer's.

I often wonder who has more of the blame, the evil doers or the higher ranking officials who decide there "was no major harm to anyone, (anyone other than the Veterans and his dependents).

Blah.  There's documentation for everything so holding folks accountable should be a no brainer correct? Training records, signatures for obtaining and documenting records,  sign offs ect., etc.

Clear and unmistakable errors in processing claims, without recourse, without consequences for decisions made?  

Not that I'm advocating scapegoats or harsh punishments, but are public lashings still illegal? Just curious?

 

 Well said. we are it, we are the vanguard, if our society ever collapses(not that I am advocating that) and there is ever a civil war the price on certain government officials heads will be very high, they will be captured, tried, found guilty and then I will leave the rest up to you good folks..... :)