Top VA aide allegedly lobbied Congress to call for Dr. Shulkin's resignation

John Ullyot, the assistant secretary for public and intergovernmental affairs at the Department of Veterans Affairs, allegedly probed a Congressional aide to try and get lawmakers to call for VA Secretary David Shulkin, MD, to resign, according to USA Today.

Mr. Ullyot, along with Dr. Shulkin's spokesman Curt Cashour, called a senior aide at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs Feb. 15 to convince members of the committee to call the White House and demand Dr. Shulkin's resignation, two anonymous sources told USA Today.

Mr. Ullyot confirmed the call took place but denied he tried to oust Dr. Shulkin. The VA has been racked with turmoil in recent weeks, with Dr. Shulkin facing criticism for allegedly misappropriating funds for a European trip with his wife and well-documented dissension among his top staffers.

In mid-February, Dr. Shulkin said he was given White House approval to fire top employees who undermine his agenda, reiterating that point to USA Today Feb. 26.

"I am committed to getting us back on track, and the only way I know how to get us back on track is to make sure there is only one agenda in this organization, and that's to serve veterans," Dr. Shulkin told USA Today. "And anybody who is trying to distract from that, I have to make sure that they understand that we're not going to have tolerance for that."

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