WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman of Colorado is calling for the resignation of Veterans Administration chief David Shulkin in the aftermath of a watchdog report that found Shulkin used much of an official 10-day trip to Europe last summer for sightseeing — which included his improper acceptance of tickets for him and his wife to attend the women’s final tennis match at Wimbledon.
Coffman blasted Shulkin in a Twitter post on Wednesday after the agency’s Office of Inspector General, an internal government watchdog, .
“It’s exactly corruption and abuses like this that doesn’t help our veterans,” Coffman wrote. Shulkin “must RESIGN now. @realDonaldTrump ran on accountability, it starts here.”
It's exactly corruption and abuses like this that doesn't help our veterans. must RESIGN now. ran on accountability, it starts here. VA chief Shulkin, staff misled ethics officials about Eurotrip, report – The Washington Post
— Mike Coffman (@RepMikeCoffman)
The call for his resignation is especially significant given that Coffman is a Republican and Shulkin was by President Donald Trump to lead the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Coffman also has been a longtime member of the House veterans committee. An aide to the Aurora lawmaker said Coffman was the first congressional Republican to ask that Shulkin to step aside.
The Marine Corps veteran is no stranger to VA criticism. He’s long castigated the delays and cost overruns associated with the VA hospital in Aurora that is slated to open later this year.