US Department of Veterans Affairs
Under Secretary for Benefits at the US Department of Veterans Affairs; former Air Force Brigadier General
PROFILE
Allison Hickey
Guest
FROM Allison Hickey
Which Way, L.A.?
Veterans and the VA: Worst Backlog in Washington Here's the kind of decision required of the Veterans Administration: is that traumatic brain injury from high school football or a roadside bomb in Iraq? Questions like that are just one reason the VA is so far behind in processing claims. While President Obama, Mitt Romney and politicians on both sides of the aisle agree that American veterans should get the benefits they deserve, many veterans are frustrated.
To the Point
The Worst Backlog in Washington Despite all the issues that keep them apart, President Obama, Mitt Romney and every other American politician agree that American veterans should get the lifetime benefits they deserve. But the Veterans Administration has been infamous for its "backlog" in processing claims, going back to before September 11. Despite 4000 new workers since 2008, less than 80 percent of the work has been done, frustrating veterans of Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam, Korea -- even World War II. Are still more workers needed? How about shifting from paper files to computers? We look at the problem and some proposed solutions. This story was informed in part from sources in the Public Insight Network. You can find out more at www.kcrw.com/insight .
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To the Point
Human Rights in the era of Donald Trump President Trump’s UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley, said today the US might pull out of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. Serious violators of human rights are members of the Council itself–and a US resignation could make things worse. Later on today’s show, now that he’s into his second term, comedian turned US Senator Al Franken is telling jokes again.
To the Point
Venezuela spirals into economic and political chaos Venezuela, a country whose potential for prosperity is unmatched, finds itself on the verge of civil war. What sustains the repressive government? With time running out, guest host León Krauze looks at what the international community can do to pull the country from the edge of collapse.
To the Point
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.