Sen. Gallego Blocks VA Nominees Over Trump Job Cuts

1 Apr at 10:22 am

3068 posts

Sen. Gallego Blocks VA Nominees Over Trump Job Cuts/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ Sen. Ruben Gallego is blocking confirmation votes for top VA nominees in protest of President Trump’s plan to slash over 80,000 jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Gallego, a Marine Corps veteran, warned the cuts would harm services for veterans. The move escalates Democratic resistance to Trump’s federal workforce overhaul.

Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., is seen in the U.S. Capitol, July 14, 2022, in Washington. Gallego says he’ll challenge independent U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona in 2024. Monday’s announcement makes Gallego the first candidate to jump into the race in the battleground state and sets up a potential three-way contest. No Republican has currently announced a run. (Tom Williams/Pool photo via AP, File)

Senator Blocks VA Nominees Over Trump Job Cuts: Quick Looks

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) places holds on VA nominee confirmations.
Protest targets Trump administration’s plan to cut 80,000 VA jobs.
Cuts would reduce staffing to pre-PACT Act levels from 2019.
Gallego warns reductions threaten care for veterans in Arizona and beyond.
Holds delay confirmations, requiring extended Senate floor time for votes.
VA Secretary Doug Collins and Deputy Secretary Paul Lawrence already confirmed.
Gallego accuses VA leadership of failing to provide transparency.
Move mirrors previous Senate holds like Tuberville’s 2023 Pentagon blockade.

Deep Look: Gallego Blocks VA Confirmations to Protest Trump Administration Cuts

Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, is taking a bold stand against the Trump administration’s plan to significantly reduce staffing at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) — by blocking the confirmation of several top VA nominees.

Gallego announced Tuesday that he will place procedural holds on pending nominees ahead of a scheduled Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing. His decision represents a sharp escalation in opposition to the administration’s sweeping cuts and breaks the normally bipartisan tone of the committee.

A Direct Response to Massive VA Workforce Reduction

At the center of Gallego’s protest is the Trump administration’s controversial proposal to eliminate more than 80,000 positions from the VA, slashing the workforce by nearly 20%. The agency, which provides health care and benefits to millions of U.S. military veterans, would return to staffing levels last seen in 2019 — before the implementation of the PACT Act, which expanded coverage for toxic exposure-related illnesses.

The cuts, according to Gallego, would be devastating.

“As someone who actually has used that VA, you know I had services there done in the past. There’s no way they’re going to be able to cut 15% of the workforce, and it’s not going to impact veterans’ benefits,” he told the AP.

He pointed to an Arizona VA hospital that reportedly received instructions to reduce staff by 15%, raising alarms over how such cuts would affect patient care and wait times.

Using Senate Procedure to Delay Nominations

By placing “holds” on VA nominees, Gallego is delaying Senate confirmation votes — a power any senator can exercise to slow down or block proceedings. Holds don’t permanently kill a nomination, but they do force leadership to spend valuable floor time advancing each candidate individually.

Currently, 13 positions at the VA require Senate confirmation. So far:

VA Secretary Doug Collins and Deputy Secretary Paul Lawrence have been confirmed.
Trump has nominated five additional candidates.
Six positions remain without nominees.

Gallego’s action could freeze confirmations for several critical roles, further complicating the VA’s leadership structure during a time of major organizational upheaval.

From Bipartisanship to Breakdown

The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee has long been known for cross-party cooperation, particularly when it comes to supporting veterans. But Gallego’s move marks a clear partisan flashpoint in the battle over federal staffing levels.

Still, it’s not without precedent. In 2023, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) similarly used Senate holds to delay hundreds of military promotions in protest of Pentagon abortion policies. After months of criticism — including from within his own party — he ultimately relented on most of the blockades.

Gallego acknowledged the political risk of breaking with committee norms but said he felt compelled by the urgency of the situation.

“Talking to veterans, people that I served with as well as seeing some of what’s happening in Arizona, I decided that whatever tool I have to fix the situation, I’m going to use it,” he said.

VA Leadership Faces Scrutiny

Gallego also voiced frustration with VA Secretary Doug Collins, despite voting to confirm him.

“I had hoped for collaboration with Collins,” Gallego said, “but I’ve struggled to get answers from the VA’s leadership.”

Though Collins has pledged that veterans’ benefits won’t be affected by the job cuts, Gallego and other Democrats remain skeptical, warning that the administration is understating the impact such a massive reduction will have on care delivery and program management.

A Broader Showdown Over Trump’s Federal Overhaul

Gallego’s blockade comes amid President Trump’s broader effort to reshape the federal workforce, including:

Massive layoffs at agencies such as HHS and CDC.
Elimination of collective bargaining rights for many civil servants.
Implementation of “Liberation Day” tariffs that have spooked markets.

Democrats are increasingly turning to procedural tools — like Senate holds and filibusters — to resist what they see as a rapid erosion of government institutions under Trump’s second term.

Whether Gallego’s maneuver gains traction or triggers similar actions by others remains to be seen. But it’s clear that veterans’ care — long considered a nonpartisan priority — is now at the center of a larger political and ideological battle in Washington.