Shinseki Tapped as Next VA Secretary

Retired Gen. Erik K. Shinseki, who served as Army chief of staff from 1999 to 2003, has been tapped by President-elect Barack Obama to serve as the next secretary of Veterans Affairs. Shinseki would oversee the second-largest federal agency as it continues to perform traditional services such as providing health care, home loans, pensions, funeral assistance and other benefits. The VA also faces an increased demand for its services from new combat veterans who serve in Afghanistan and Iraq; since the war began, requests for VA help in mitigating post-traumatic stress disorder, brain injuries, and prosthetics have risen considerably. The VA still also is struggling with the long-standing issue of unresolved claims, now standing somewhere in the neighborhood of 600,000 cases. "If confirmed, I will work each and every day to ensure that we are serving you as well as you served us," Shinseki said Dec. 5, the day he was nominated. He would succeed Dr. James B. Peake.