[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 69 (Tuesday, April 25, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1321-S1322]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   Nomination of Joshua David Jacobs

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I come to the floor this afternoon to 
urge all of my colleagues to join me in voting to confirm Joshua Jacobs 
to serve as Under Secretary for Benefits at the U.S. Department of 
Veterans Affairs.
  Mr. Jacobs is an exceptionally qualified pick to fill this role, who 
will work day in and day out to make sure our Nation lives up to its 
obligation to take care of its veterans. I should know because that is 
exactly what he did when he worked in my office.
  Joshua came to work every day focused on Washington State veterans 
and their families and helped to prepare the VA for an influx of 
veterans, to expand clinics and facilities, and to ensure veterans had 
the services they needed to transition to civilian life, especially 
when it comes to employment. That track record is why I was thrilled to 
have him return to work for me as deputy staff director on the Veterans 
Affairs Committee later, when I became chair, and why I was so excited 
to join my colleagues on the committee earlier this year to advance 
this nomination in a bipartisan way.
  When I was chair, Mr. Jacobs helped lead the efforts to get veterans 
more mental health services, expand and support services for women 
veterans, and ensure veterans had a seamless transition from the DOD to 
the VA, where too often our servicemembers and veterans faced too much 
redtape and the VA faced too little accountability.
  Given his drive back then, it is no surprise to me that the work he 
has done since shows his deep commitment to serving those who served 
our Nation and why he is such a strong fit and trusted choice for this 
role.
  When Mr. Jacobs was a Senior Advisor to the Office of the VA 
Secretary under President Obama, he was awarded the Secretary's 
Meritorious Service Award. When President Biden was elected, he was 
chosen to serve on the incoming administration's VA transition team. 
After Mr. Jacobs returned to the Department as a Senior Advisor in 
2021, he improved its decision-making process by establishing and 
leading the new Evidence-based Policy Council and developing a new 
interagency policy development process to coordinate and implement more 
than 50 interagency policy efforts.
  As a Senior Advisor for Policy who carried out the responsibilities 
of the Under Secretary for Benefits, Mr. Jacobs has taken on the 
enormous task of coordinating a team of 25,000 people and 56 regional 
offices, processing centers, and headquarters as they worked to manage 
over $100 billion in benefits and to make good on our promise to 
millions of veterans and their families.
  He knows full well how important a smoothly functioning VA is to the 
Americans who are relying on the benefits our Nation promised them. I 
have no doubt he will go to work every day determined to make sure our 
Nation lives up to those promises.
  I know Mr. Jacobs, who is a Washington State native and graduate of 
the University of Washington, will do great work for America's veterans 
as Under Secretary for benefits.
  I am proud to support his nomination. I look forward to working with 
him once he is confirmed.
  I yield the floor.

[[Page S1322]]