[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 23, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S928-S929]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                      Nomination of Michael Missal

  Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, it is quite a discussion when we talk 
about confirmations, one of the responsibilities this body has that the 
other body does not have. In the case of a U.S. Supreme Court vacancy, 
however, during an election year, I think it has actually been some 80 
years since they have actually filled a vacancy as opposed to waiting 
until after the next election.
  I am concerned today, though, about another confirmation. VA IG 
nominee Michael Missal has been nominated, and I have a hold. To 
explain what that means, when you have a hold, that doesn't necessarily 
mean you don't approve of the nominee, but it does mean there is one 
reason or another you don't want to go ahead and confirm that person. 
That happened in the case of the nominee to be a VA inspector general, 
Michael Missal. Actually, I am not placing a hold on him because of 
deficiencies in him but deficiencies in the Office of the Inspector 
General. Today what I am announcing is that I am lifting that hold. 
That means they are free to go ahead and have this nominee go forward, 
and I think that is the right thing to do.
  At the Muskogee VA facility alone, the IG office has conducted nine 
investigations since 2009, and there has been little or no change in 
the quality of care. Right now, my office is working hundreds of cases 
of Oklahoma veterans facing inadequate care or blocked access to 
benefits. I wrote the VA IG in January of 2016 simply requesting that 
the VA IG--inspector general--visit Oklahoma facilities and to do so 
with an outside entity such as a joint commission. There is an attitude 
sometimes with individuals not wanting outside help, a kind of 
assumption that ``I don't need their help.'' Their response letter 
denied my request to conduct an investigation with a third party. It is 
time for our VA facilities in Oklahoma to be held to those same 
standards as private hospitals, and I believe it would take the aid of 
an outside group to make this happen because right now they are not 
meeting that quality.
  Since placing a hold on Mr. Missal, the IG office has committed to 
investigating Oklahoma's VA facilities with the oversight of an outside 
entity, and I have also had commitment from Michael Missal that he will 
do that. I appreciate their commitment, but our work to improve the 
care for Oklahoma veterans doesn't end there.
  Since the VA reform bill passed Congress this last summer--and it was 
a good bill--it is clear our facilities in Oklahoma have continued 
business as usual. I haven't seen any noticeable difference in the 
performance and treatment of our veterans since the passage and 
activation of that bill. I believe the impending investigations will 
show it is going to require a change in the management level to bring 
about lasting improvements for veterans care.
  That is why I, along with my junior Senator from Oklahoma James 
Lankford, introduced S. 2554, the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Accountability Act, on February 12. This legislation is critical to 
providing the best treatment for our country's veterans. Building upon 
the comprehensive plan of the 2014 VA reform bill, our legislation 
grants VA leadership at the regional level the authority to fire and 
demote staff working in these facilities. I think a lot of them thought 
the reform bill did that, but it didn't. We haven't been able to do it. 
It also allows directors of veterans regional chapters to contract with 
an outside entity to conduct investigations of their VA medical 
facilities. As I have worked to address the many concerns I have with 
Oklahoma's VA facilities, I have come to trust the leadership at the 
regional level. One individual who has come in is Ralph Gigliotti. He 
has done a great job. He doesn't have the authority to do what this 
bill would allow him to do. Not only were intermediate surgeries 
suspended due to what they have now uncovered, but also the chief of 
staff has been temporarily removed from his position.
  However, this process revealed that regional directors are not 
presently empowered to address staffing concerns in the facilities they 
oversee. We have seen this in the State of Oklahoma numerous times. Our 
legislation peels away the layers of bureaucracy and allows the 
directors and each of the regional areas to play a larger role with 
improving the VA system as a whole.
  As we all know, freedom isn't free. Many of our veterans have paid 
the prices with scars, some visible and some may go unseen such as 
post-traumatic stress disorder--PTSD--depression, and traumatic brain 
injuries. In my great State of Oklahoma, there are more than 37,000 
military families and roughly 340,000 veterans that call our State 
home, attend our churches, and contribute to our communities. On behalf 
of Oklahoma, I say we are humbled by the immeasurable dedication of 
each and every one of them. I think it is the government's duty to 
honor the promises made to our veterans in return for their sacrifice. 
I urge our colleagues to remember that.
  I can remember when I was in the Army, commitments were made to me

[[Page S929]]

when a decision was made--actually, mine was not a decision because it 
was compulsory service at that time, which I think we ought to go back 
to. Anyway, I think this is going to be good, and this is going to give 
us the resources and the capability of correcting the problems as we 
see them. For that reason, I am lifting my hold on Mr. Michael Missal 
and his nomination will move forward.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Vermont.