House chairman asks Attorney General to investigate former VA leaders

House Republican lawmakers are asking Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate whether former Veterans Affairs leaders violated federal laws with their budgetary mistakes last year, potentially shifting the ongoing political dispute into the courts.

“If any criminal or civil violations occurred, those responsible must be held accountable,” House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Mike Bost, R-Ill., wrote in a letter to Bondi Tuesday. He asked for her office to look into “the submission of false statements to Congress, obstruction of oversight, fraud, or misappropriation of federal funds.”

Top Democratic leaders decried the move as “a desperate political stunt” by Republican leaders attempting to distract from the current administration’s planned cuts to VA staff and services.

“I am appalled by his recommendation and blatant weaponization of the judicial system,” said Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., ranking member of Bost’s committee. “It is unprecedented, and the American people — especially our veterans — deserve better than sham investigations and political theater becoming the new normal.”

The conflict dates back to last summer, when then-VA Secretary Denis McDonough and other senior department leaders told lawmakers that funding for benefits and medical care could run out in October because of increased programmatic usage earlier in 2024.

Congress approved $3 billion in emergency funding in September amid pressure from veterans groups and the White House, staving off any potential fiscal shortfall. But in late October, VA officials acknowledged their budget estimates were flawed, and that more than $5 billion in funding was available for the start of the new fiscal year.

At the time, McDonough and other VA leaders said the moves were made “out of an abundance of caution” and warned that any shortfall could have disrupted veterans’ payouts.

But Bost and other Republicans disputed that assertion, and accused White House officials of manufacturing panic about veterans benefits just weeks ahead of the November presidential election.

In his letter to the attorney general’s office, Bost said that VA leaders knew of their budgetary errors even before the emergency congressional vote, but did not share that information until after the extra money was approved.

“This delayed disclosure and the omission of available resources in key budget documents call into question the accuracy and integrity of [the department’s] budget justification process,” he wrote.

“The suggestion that senior VA officials submitted materially inaccurate funding requests and failed to disclose critical budget information … warrant immediate and independent review by your office. These failures undermined the appropriations process, misled lawmakers, and – most importantly – put the benefits and services America’s veterans rely on at risk.”

Bost specifically singled out McDonough, former Under Secretary for Benefits Josh Jacobs and former Under Secretary for Health Dr. Shereef Elnahal for potential charges.

An inspector general review of the budget issues released last month found significant problems with VA’s budgetary projections and accounting practices, but did not recommend criminal or civil actions against former department leaders.

Democratic leaders have accused President Donald Trump of abusing his executive power to attack and harass political opponents. Takano called Bost’s investigation request an extension of those same abusive practices.

“Former Secretary McDonough and his team led VA through one of its most successful eras in history,” he said in a statement. “They deserve to be honored — not smeared by partisan attacks.”

In addition to whatever actions the attorney general’s office pursues, Bost promised continued investigation from his committee into the issue.

Relationships between Republicans and Democrats on the committee — which typically has fewer partisan fights than other congressional panels — have grown increasingly tense over the last few years, with each side accusing the other of sowing division and panic among veterans.