Congressman Phil Hare (D-IL), a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, today released the following statement regarding President-elect Barack Obama’s selection of General Eric Shinseki as Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

“I am very pleased with President-elect Obama’s selection of General Shinseki as the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs. He is a battle-tested warrior who has demonstrated great leadership abilities in both military and civilian service.  Whether it was his highly decorated service in Vietnam or the courage to speak truth to power about the Bush Administration’s failure to send an adequate number of troops to Iraq, General Shinseki has always put his country above what is politically popular. This sort of selfless candor is desperately needed at the VA which for too long has put ideology above the needs of our veterans.

“Our nation’s veterans deserve the highest quality health care, education, and job training benefits. And they deserve to receive those benefits in a timely fashion.  I am convinced that a VA under the command of General Shinseki will be more proactive in addressing these needs.  I applaud President-elect Obama on his well-informed choice, and I look forward to working with General Shinseki in the 111th Congress.”