‘There's a war on vets': Dems launch plans to counter Trump's VA moves
Angry over planned cuts at Veterans Affairs facilities and a lack of communication from department leaders about those moves, congressional Democrats are plotting confirmation holds, legislative obstruction and unofficial hearings in an attempt to create public outrage over the administration's changes to veterans programs and benefits.
'There's a war on veterans,' said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., at a Wednesday 'shadow hearing' on Capitol Hill highlighting their complaints about the looming plans.
'President Trump has already fired more veterans than any president in the history of the United States … and they have already told the country that [VA leaders] are going to lay off another 80,000 people at the VA.'
Wednesday's event — the first in a series planned by Democrats on the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee — featured testimony from veterans who lost their government jobs in the initial waves of dismissals connected to President Donald Trump's efforts to shrink the federal workforce.
VA secretary insists massive staff cuts needed to refocus department
About one-third of federal employees are veterans. White House officials have not said how many of the dismissed workers are veterans, but outside groups have estimated that more than 5,000 former military members have been caught up in the cost-cutting efforts so far.
And critics say that number will only grow. VA Secretary Doug Collins has announced plans to trim his agency's workforce back to 2019 staffing levels, a move that would eliminate more than 80,000 of the department's roughly 480,000 workers.
In an interview with Military Times in March, Collins said efforts will be made to consider veterans status in job cuts and contract cancellations, but that the federal government should not serve as an employment program for the country.
He also has repeatedly vowed that individuals who work directly in veterans health care or processing veterans benefits will not be impacted, and that veterans will see more support as a result of a more efficient department, not less.
But Democrats in the House and Senate have disputed those claims.
They call the department reform plans haphazard and cruel, without a clear guideline on how to protect veterans benefits and support services amid plans to create savings in government operations. Much of the anger at Wednesday's event was focused on the Department of Government Oversight and billionaire Elon Musk and their opaque authority in the administration.
'Fear and chaos, that's how this administration is running every agency,' said Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii. 'VA is a very critical part of the health care that veterans deserve, and they don't know what is happening to VA.'
Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee ranking member Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said Wednesday's hearing is the first step in a series of attempts by his caucus to slow or halt the controversial reforms.
The caucus plans similar hearings every few weeks throughout the spring, highlighting potential dangers of the White House's VA plans.
Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., has announced a hold on all VA nominees until Collins withdraws his plans for significant staff cuts. Blumenthal went further on Wednesday, promising a hold on VA and some Defense Department nominees until more information is released on workforce and contracting changes at the veterans bureaucracy.
And the senior Democrat on the veterans committee said lawmakers are looking at procedural moves to slow down floor business in protest of the VA cuts, and their refusal to publicly testify on the proposals. House Democratic leaders are planning similar tactics in coming weeks.
'Obviously, our tools are limited, since we're in the minority,' Blumenthal said. 'But we're going to use every one of them as effectively and promptly as we can. And ultimately, we're going to take this to the veterans themselves, enlist them in this fight.'
In response to Wednesday's threats of obstruction from Democrats, VA officials repeated a statement from earlier in the week criticizing the moves.
'Imagine how much better off veterans would be if lawmakers like Sen. Blumenthal cared as much about fixing VA as they do about protecting the department's broken bureaucracy,' said VA Press Secretary Pete Kasperowicz.
'VA health care has been on the Government Accountability Office's high-risk list for more than a decade, and GAO says VA faces 'system-wide challenges in overseeing patient safety and access to care, hiring critical staff and meeting future infrastructure needs.' Under Secretary Collins, VA is working hard to fix these and other issues.'
Collins is expected to testify before both the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees — and the chambers' respective appropriations panels — later this spring. But those dates have not yet been announced, and Republican leaders of the panels have not publicly pushed for congressional questioning of the VA leader in the near future.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Fast Company
5 minutes ago
- Fast Company
Gavin Newsom is having his social media moment
'Fuck around' and 'find out,' read a TikTok post, following a screenshot announcing that California is suing President Donald Trump for deploying the National Guard to the streets of Los Angeles. But the TikTok wasn't shared by a typical meme account—it came from California Governor Gavin Newsom. 'I damn near fell over when I realized this was Gov. Newsom's page,' one user commented. Since Friday, demonstrations have erupted across Los Angeles in protest of the president's immigration policies and the ongoing Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. Although many of the demonstrations have remained peaceful, there have been violent incidents including authorities deploying tear gas and rubber bullets, and protestors setting Waymo vehicles ablaze throughout the city. As tensions escalated, the Trump administration deployed the National Guard and Marines—despite objections from local officials—sparking a lawsuit from the state, threats of arrest against Governor Newsom, and a surge of defiant memes. 'And remember kids, the next time anybody tells you 'the government wouldn't do that', oh yes they would,' says the popular TikTok sound used on Newsom's official account video, playing over screenshots of news headlines and images of armed forces confronting demonstrators. In another viral video from the governor's page, which amassed over 5.4 million views, Taylor Swift's 'You Need To Calm Down' plays over a series of photos of the two politicians. 'r u ok?' the post asks, with a caption reading: 'America's keyboard warrior.' Newsom's clapback drew widespread praise in the comments. 'I do disagree with Newsom a lot but him standing up to tyranny and standing with your state takes some serious guts. Hats off to you Newsom,' wrote one user. He's also taken to his personal account to deliver meme-laced messages to Trump—one featuring a photoshopped image of the president wearing a crown, captioned 'send in the troops.' The slideshow ends with a shot from the musical Hamilton, with text reading: 'Democracy is under assault right before our eyes. It's time for all of us to stand up.' The online showdown has significantly boosted Newsom's social media presence, growing his personal TikTok account by approximately 397,000 followers and his official Governor account by 479,000 since Friday. Newsom is the latest in a growing number of politicians leveraging memes and social media to bypass traditional media and speak directly to the public through humor. Famously, Kamala Harris gained momentum during her presidential campaign with ' Brat summer ' and the coconut tree trend, while Joe Biden leaned into the viral ' Dark Brandon ' meme during his reelection campaign. Although meme strategies can generate enthusiasm and visibility, the 2024 election results suggest that online popularity doesn't always translate at the polls.


CBS News
6 minutes ago
- CBS News
Mayor Bass, regional mayors call for end to ICE raids in Southern California: "Our communities are not battlegrounds"
After days of violent and destructive protests in Los Angeles, fueled by an increase in immigration enforcement operations, Mayor Karen Bass and other regional mayors called for an end to Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. At a news conference Wednesday morning, Bass said the unrest in a portion of Los Angeles started last Friday after immigration operations were carried out in several parts of Southern California. Bass told reporters that LA and surrounding cities were "peaceful" before the raids. Mayor Karen Bass called on the Trump administration to end the immigration enforcement operations taking place across the Southern California region. KCAL News She explained that the raids have caused fear in immigrant communities, and accused President Trump of worsening the situation when he ordered the deployment of National Guard and U.S. Marine troops. She called for an end to ICE raids and the federalization of troops. "When you start deploying federalized troops on the heels of these raids, it is a drastic and chaotic escalation and completely unnecessary," Bass said. Mr. Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, claiming that his decision to deploy troops to LA saved the city from burning to the ground. "The great people of Los Angeles are very lucky that I made the decision to go in and help!!!," he wrote. Her speech came a day after she implemented a curfew in a portion of downtown LA after five consecutive nights of demonstrations, which have escalated to clashes between protesters and law enforcement officers, as well as hundreds of arrests. Since the start of the protests, parts of downtown LA have been covered in graffiti, businesses have been looted and public property has been vandalized. TOPSHOT - A car burns as a demonstrator waves a Mexican national flag during a protest following federal immigration operations, in the Compton neighborhood of Los Angeles, California on June 7, 2025. RINGO CHIU/AFP via Getty Images During an interview Wednesday morning on CBS Los Angeles, Bass explained that the curfew will be extended until it is necessary to ensure public safety. The curfew currently runs for one square mile in the downtown area from the 5 Freeway to the 110 Freeway and from the 10 Freeway to where the 110 Freeway and 5 Freeway merge from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Bass has also taken to social media to share how the raids are affecting the city. In a post on X, she wrote, "Angelenos are trying to live their lives—going to work, caring for their families—while facing the constant threat of sudden immigration crackdowns." Other mayors from across Southern California joined Bass, calling for an end to the ICE raids. The Mayor of Huntington Park, Arturo Flores, a U.S. Marine Corps combat veteran, told reporters that the military neighborhoods. "The deployment of Marines on our U.S. soil is an alarming escalation that undermines the values of democracy," Flores said. "Our communities are not battle grounds." Flores said the ICE raids being carried out in his community and others across the region are a form of intimidation that traumatizes hardworking residents. He said fear-based tactics are being used to target immigrant communities. The Mayor of Paramount, Peggy Lemons, added that residents are choosing not to leave their homes or send their children to school out of fear that ICE will take them away. "For many in our city, this has been the most devastating time in recent memory," Lemons said. She said immigrants, who play such an important role in the makeup of the region, should not have to live in constant fear.
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
State Department orders departure of nonessential staff from Baghdad embassy
The State Department is ordering the departure of all nonessential staff from its embassy in Baghdad due to concern over increased security risks in the region, according to two State Department officials familiar with the matter. "President Trump is committed to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad. In keeping with that commitment, we are constantly assessing the appropriate personnel posture at all our embassies," one of the officials said. "Based on our latest analysis, we decided to reduce our Mission in Iraq." The embassy already has a very limited number of nonessential employees, so the order is not expected to impact many individuals. Under the current plan, one official said the U.S. military would not be involved in transporting the nonessential personnel out of the country, but that those plans could change if the situation on the ground calls for it. Another U.S. official said that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has authorized the voluntary departure of military dependents from locations across the Middle East as tensions ratchet up between Israel and Iran. -ABC News' Luis Martinez and Anne Flaherty contributed to this report. State Department orders departure of nonessential staff from Baghdad embassy originally appeared on