-President Trump's firing
of former Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin
last month sparked a debate about whether or not
Trump will move to privatize the VA.
So how concerned should we be,
and has Trump made good on his promise
to fix the VA in general?
It's time for "The Check In."
[ Cheers and applause ]
[ Bell dings ]
-President Trump has an idea how to fix some of the problems
with the Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare system.
See if you can spot the one word
he thinks will make all the difference.
-We're going to have a choice. And we are now doing choice.
We are going to ensure every veteran in America
has the choice to seek care at the Veterans Administration
or to seek private medical care.
We want them to have choice.
-"Choice" is the word Republicans use
when they mean privatization,
because there's this mind-set on the right
that the private sector can do everything
better than the government can.
There is debate to be had, but I'll just say
that the Hoover Dam has been there for almost 90 years,
while the Jamba Juice on your block that used to be a Curves
is now a Chipotle.
[ Laughter and applause ]
Trump talks about this idea of choice
like he came up with it, but in reality,
The Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act
has been in place since 2014 --
You know, back when your Chipotle was a RadioShack.
[ Laughter ]
Now, among other things,
the act allows veterans to seek private care
if they live too far from the VA facility
or have to wait too long to get an appointment.
But even with that choice,
studies have shown that veterans overwhelmingly prefer
to go to the VA for their care.
But, unfortunately, when it comes to decisions
involving veterans, Trump reportedly
seeks the advice of Fox News personality and Iraq war veteran
Pete Hegseth, who favors an overhaul of the VA
and who was on Trump's short list
to be the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Now, you might be unfamiliar with Hegseth
because you don't watch Fox News
or you're very familiar with him,
which means you just hate watching my show,
and, frankly, I don't appreciate that.
[ Laughter ]
So to get you better acquainted,
here he is weighing in on issues raging from the NFL
to Charlottesville to the March For Our Lives.
-I have to ask you, what are
we kneeling for at this point,
because you talk about social injustice.
This is the least sexist,
least racist, most free,
most equal, most prosperous
country in the history
of human -- human kind.
I think the president nailed it,
condemn in the strongest possible terms
hatred and bigotry, on all sides
as opposed to immediately
picking a side out the gate.
Forgive me if I don't want a lesson on the Second Amendment
from a 16-year-old.
Forgive me if I don't want watch
a 9-year-old tell me that her
dream is a world without guns.
I watched that and you know
what my reaction was, honestly?
I donated to the NRA this morning.
I'm serious.
-No one thinks you're not serious.
[ Laughter ]
But here's where I'm serious.
I hope you're better with a gun than you are with an axe.
This is an actual clip of Pete Hegseth.
-Plus, Pete and Clayton
are facing off.
They're testing their skills
with the axe.
Who's going to win this battle
of the lumberjacks?
[ Audience gasps, murmuring ]
I'm putting my money on...
Clayton.
-It's like the saying goes --
the only thing that stops a bad guy with an axe is a drum kit?
[ Laughter ]
Now, both Hegseth and the White House deny
that Trump's wanting to privatize the VA,
but it's difficult to take that argument seriously
because Trump floated the idea of privatization
shortly after he was elected.
If the VA were privatized,
it would only benefit a select few, like big hospitals
and providers at the expense of taxpayers
and veterans themselves, and these concerns
were heightened after Trump's former VA Secretary
David Shulkin said he was fired because he refused to go along
with privatizing the VA.
-Shulkin alleged today he was
fired because he did not want to
privatize VA care, in essence,
because he refused to dismantle the VA.
He claims he fell victim to
a power play by Trump's political appointees.
-The good news for Shulkin is every time Trump removes
an obstacle, it comes back as an even bigger obstacle.
Trump removed James Comey, Comey wrote a book.
Trump removed Michael Flynn, Flynn flipped.
If Trump had a mole removed,
it would be testifying before Congress a week later.
[ Laughter ]
Now Trump could have chosen a number of qualified people
to replace David Shulkin at the VA.
Someone who has experience running a massive bureaucracy
would have been a good start.
But instead, Trump went with White House doctor
and Navy Rear Admiral Dr. Ronny Jackson.
That's right, he chose the White House doctor.
I guess we should just be happy
Trump didn't go with his personal doctor.
In case you don't remember... [ Laughter ]
That is, for real, Trump's personal doctor
Harold Bornstein.
Aw, bro.
Brooooo.
You got a little PTSD?
You need a little hydroponic chronic
and 200cc of Pink Floyd, baby.
[ Laughter ]
Now Jackson's hearing, during which he was expected
to answer questions about privatization,
was set for this Wednesday, but lawmakers have postponed it
after they had received reports of allegations
that Jackson oversaw a hostile work environment
as the White House doctor,
allowing the overprescribing of drugs,
as well as claims that Dr. Ronny L. Jackson
drank too much on the job.
And I for one am shocked to hear that a 50-year-old man
who goes by Ronny would behave improperly.
[ Laughter ]
The only way it's okay
to be a 50-year-old man named Ronny
is if you play the jazz flute.
[ Laughter ]
Oh, yeah! Dr. Ronny is in the pocket tonight!
[ Applause ]
Now, Trump was asked about what he thinks Dr. Jackson
should do next in light of these allegations.
And his response was, as usual, all over the place.
-I said to Dr. Jackson,
"What do you need it for?"
So, we'll see what happens.
I don't want to put a man through
who's not a political person --
I don't want to put a man
through a process like this.
It's too ugly and too disgusting.
If I were him, actually,
in many ways I'd love to be him,
but the fact is I wouldn't do it.
I wouldn't do it.
-What do you mean if you were him, you wouldn't do it?
You're even less qualified, and you did do it.
[ Laughter and applause ]
This has been "The Check In."
♪♪
[ Bell dings ]