    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 51 (Monday, December 24, 2007)]
    [Pages 1626-1628]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Remarks at a Swearing-In Ceremony for James B. Peake as Secretary of
    Veterans Affairs

    December 20, 2007

        The President. Good morning. Thanks for the warm welcome to the
    Department of Veterans Affairs. I am proud to introduce your new
    Secretary, Lieutenant General James Peake. And I am pleased to be joined
    by his wife, Janice, and daughter Kimberly, and her husband, Mack. I
    know they're proud of what Jim has accomplished during his career, and I
    thank them for supporting him in his work ahead.
        I thank the Vice President for joining me today. We had a long ride
    over here, Jim. [Laughter] Plenty of time to visit. [Laughter] I want to
    thank the Secretary for joining us--Secretary of Defense Bob Gates;
    honored you're here, sir. Appreciate Elaine Chao, Secretary of Labor;
    Deputy Secretary Gordon Mansfield--I'm going to say something about you
    here in a minute. I appreciate Admiral Thad Allen, Commandant of the
    U.S. Coast Guard, for joining us. Thanks for coming, Admiral; General
    Dick Cody, Vice Chief

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    of Staff of the United States Army. I appreciate all those who wear the
    uniform who have joined us today as well.
        I want to thank Arlen Specter, United States Senator, for joining
    us. Senator, thanks for coming. And my Congressman, the Congressman from
    central Texas, Congressman Chet Edwards, chairman of the Military
    Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee; proud
    you're here.
        I want to thank the members of veterans service organizations who
    are with us today.
        Audience member. Hoorah! [Laughter]
        The President. Looking forward to working with you. [Laughter] And
    behave yourself. [Laughter]
        The Secretary of Veterans Affairs has one of the most important jobs
    in our Government. The Secretary leads a Department of more than 240,000
    employees, and I want to thank every one of them for serving our
    country; appreciate your hard work. The Secretary is charged with a
    solemn responsibility, to ensure our Nation's veterans receive the care
    and the benefits they deserve.
        Dr. Jim Peake has the skills and experience to carry out this
    mission. He is both the first physician and the first general to lead
    this Department. His 36-year medical career has taken him to military
    bases across the world. And during the opening years of the war on
    terror, he directed the Army Medical Department as Army Surgeon General.
    In that position, he led more than 55,000 medical personnel and managed
    an operating budget of nearly $5 billion. Throughout his long career,
    Dr. Peake has worked to improve the way we deliver medical care to our
    troops. And thanks to his efforts, many who once might have died on the
    battlefield have returned home to live lives of hope and promise.
        We see this hope and promise in the story of Dr. Peake's own life.
    Dr. Peake's first stay at a military hospital came years before he
    entered his--earned his medical degree at Cornell. It came as a wounded
    patient during the Vietnam war. This West Point graduate received
    several medals for his valor, including the Silver Star; he earned a
    reputation for honor and selflessness.
        Dr. Peake learned those values from his loving parents who taught
    him the meaning of service. His mother was an Army nurse. His father was
    an Army officer, who spent most of his 30-year career in the Medical
    Service Corps. And I know they both would be proud to see their oldest
    son, Jim, become the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
        Dr. Peake follows in the footsteps of another fine public servant
    and Vietnam combat veteran, Secretary Jim Nicholson. Throughout his
    career, Jim Nicholson has served our Nation with honor and integrity--as
    an Army Ranger, an ambassador, and as Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
    Secretary Nicholson built on the fine record of his predecessor, Tony
    Principi--Mr. Secretary, glad you're here today--and he leaves an
    impressive legacy of his own. Under his leadership, this Department has
    worked to meet the needs of new veterans returning home from Afghanistan
    and Iraq. Secretary Nicholson also launched an effort to modernize the
    Department's information technology systems, so we can better protect
    patients' personal information. I want to thank Jim for his work on
    behalf of our Nation's veterans, and I wish him and his wife Suzanne all
    the very best.
        I also want to thank Deputy Secretary Gordon Mansfield. He served as
    the Acting Secretary for Veterans Affairs since October. Gordon is a
    retired Army officer who has dedicated much of his career to serving his
    fellow veterans. I've benefited from Gordon's wisdom and counsel, and he
    did a terrific job as Acting Secretary during this time of transition.
        Dr. Peake takes office at a critical moment in the history of this
    Department. Our Nation is at war, and many new veterans are leaving the
    battlefield and entering the VA system. This system provides our
    veterans with the finest care, but sometimes the bureaucracy can be
    difficult. To address these problems, our administration, along with the
    Secretary's leadership, is implementing recommendations of the Dole-
    Shalala Commission on Wounded Warriors. In other words, we're not going
    to tolerate bureaucratic delays. We want the very best for our veterans.
    Some of the Commission's recommendations require the approval of
    Congress--and Congressman and Senator, we're looking forward to working
    with you on

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    those. I've sent legislation to Congress to carry out these additional
    recommendations, and Dr. Peake is going to work with Members from both
    sides of the aisle to get me a good bill that I can sign into law.
        Our Nation has no higher calling than to provide for those who have
    borne the cost of battle, and we will honor our responsibilities. I am
    confident in the future of this Department because I have seen firsthand
    the dedication and character of the men and women who work here. And I
    am confident that you will have a worthy and strong leader in our new
    Secretary.
        Congratulations, Jim. I appreciate your willingness to serve. And
    now I ask the Vice President to administer the oath.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:24 a.m. at the Department of Veterans
    Affairs. In his remarks, he referred to former Senator Bob Dole and
    former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna E. Shalala,
    Cochairs, President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded
    Warriors. The transcript released by the Office of the Press Secretary
    also included the remarks of Secretary Peake.