There's a new administration in town and that means new leadership at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
President Joe Biden tapped former White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough as his VA secretary nominee and on Inauguration Day VA officials announced a list of Biden's VA appointees, along with some officials filling acting roles until Biden's nominees make it through the confirmation process in Congress.
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Most of the appointees or nominees are familiar faces at VA or in the veteran community and some are rejoining the department.
Less than two hours after Biden took the oath of office, his administration, like others before, announced a series of new acting VA leaders and political appointees to lead the second-largest federal department and the largest healthcare system in the country. Chief among those is the new acting Secretary Dat P. Tran, who previously served as principal deputy assistant secretary for enterprise integration at VA. Tran replaces outgoing VA Secretary (and Trump appointee) Robert Wilkie.
All major national veteran service organizations and many others called for Wilkie's resignation or removal in recent months after a damning watchdog report found he and senior staff sought to discredit a woman veteran who reported being sexually assaulted at the Washington, D.C. VA. Wilkie refused to step down and the White House made no public moves against him.
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Tran will continue to serve in an acting capacity as leader of the VA until Biden's nominee, Denis McDonough, gets an official nod from the Senate. Tran has also served as deputy assistant secretary for data governance and analysis at VA, and has more than a decade of experience leading data analytics and statistics at the department, according to his biographical information on the VA website.
McDonough was President Barack Obama's White House chief of staff and also served as Obama's deputy national security adviser, including during the 2011 Navy SEAL raid in that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. McDonough was credited with helping Obama attempt to bridge divides in Congress, including for the Veterans Choice Act, which opened more opportunities for veterans to seek care outside VA paid for by the department. Since then, the expired Choice Act has been replaced by the Mission Act, signed into law by former President Donald Trump.
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Joining Tran are several other VA officials stepping up in acting roles, including Dr. Richard Stone, the executive in charge of the Veterans Health Administration, who will serve as acting undersecretary for health at the department. In an email to VA staff Wednesday obtained by Connecting Vets, Stone said that he had been asked to continue in his role as VHA leader under the Biden administration.
"While we anticipate shifts in direction and policy over the coming weeks, our work continues, the pandemic continues and veterans continue to need care," Stone wrote. "I am glad to share that I will continue in my role under the new administration. I believe it is as true today as ever that VHA is critical to veteran health care and to the nation's COVID-19 response."
Paula Molloy was chosen to serve as as assistant secretary for human resources and administration/operations, security and preparedness. Molloy rejoins VA after serving as the chief administrative officer for the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), an independent federal agency, since 2017. Prior to joining the DFC, Molloy served as the VA assistant deputy undersecretary for health for workforce services, leading initiatives to support more than 320,000 VHA employees and more than 120,000 health professions trainees.
Kayla M. Williams is set to serve as assistant secretary for public and intergovernmental affairs. Prior to rejoining VA, Williams was most recently senior fellow and director of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program at Center for a New American Security.
Williams previously served as director of the Center for Women Veterans at VA, where she was primary adviser to the secretary on department policies, programs, and legislation affecting women veterans. Williams also spent eight years at RAND researching service member and veteran health needs and benefits, international security, and intelligence policy.
Chris Díaz was chosen by the president to serve as acting chief of staff, White House liaison, Office of the Secretary. Diaz is the founder and former executive director of the award-winning, veteran-led non-profit, Action Tank. Diaz "is a successful entrepreneur whose company, Performa, supported clients focused on implementing positive lifestyle changes, increasing their capacity for self-awareness and actualization," according to a news release from VA.
Meg Kabat is set to serve as senior advisor for families, caregivers, and survivors, Office of the Secretary. Kabat is a licensed clinical social worker with more than 25 years supporting service members, veterans and their families. Early in her civilian career with the U.S. Navy, Kabat served as a case manager. From 2011-19, she served in leadership roles at the VA Caregiver Support Program. Most recently, Kabat has been a senior director at Atlas Research, supporting the Department of Defense (DoD) Sexual Assault Prevention Office (SAPRO), as well as facilitating the COVID-19 Nursing Home Commission in collaboration with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS).
Raymond C. Kelley was chosen to serve as the veteran service organization liaison, Office of the Secretary. Prior to his appointment to VA, Kelley served as the majority staff director for the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. In this role, Kelley served as the primary day-to-day veterans’ portfolio legislative and political advisor to Chairman Mark Takano, D-California, and oversaw the daily operations of the committee staff. Prior to his work on the committee, Kelley was the director of the National Legislative Service for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, where he was responsible for the planning, coordination and implementation of VFW’s priorities that were presented to Congress, federal departments and agencies, and other organizations. Kelley also served as the National Legislative Director for AMVETS before his work at the VFW.
Ya Wei (Jenny) Wang will serve as director of mission operations, Office of the Secretary. Wang recently served on the Biden-Harris Transition Team. She has served in foreign policy and national security positions throughout the government. From 2013-17, Wang served as special assistant and advisor to the White House chief of staff, where she managed executive operations. Prior to her time in the White House Chief of Staff’s office, Wang held positions in the National Security Council, including special assistant in the Counterterrorism Directorate.
Tahmika Ruth Jackson will serve as special counsel in the Office of General Counsel. Prior to her appointment to VA, Jackson served as the National Security Agency senior representative to the National Counterterrorism Center in McLean, Virginia. Jackson also served as a counterterrorism senior leader in the Counterterrorism Operations Cell of the National Security Operations Center, acting as NSA’s primary coordinator for real-time counterterrorism situational awareness and crisis response.
Jackson formerly represented the Department of Defense as an attorney in the NSA Office of the General Counsel working national security and intelligence law issues.
Terrence L. Hayes will serve as press secretary in the Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs. Prior to assuming the role of VA press secretary, Hayes served as the national director of communication and public affairs for the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Hayes has served in executive-level public affairs positions throughout his 24-year civilian and military career. Hayes formerly served as a public affairs professional at the Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs at VA, where he was responsible for answering all national, regional and local media queries on behalf of then-Secretaries David Shulkin and Robert Wilkie. He also served as public affairs adviser and spokesperson to the senior enlisted advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from November 2011 to January 2016.
John Santos is set to serve as special assistant in the Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs. Santos previously served as the Asian American and Pacific Islander outreach director at the Democratic National Committee, where he led the DNC’s efforts to mobilize Asian American and Pacific Islander voters through partnership with the Biden-Harris campaign and community leaders across the country. In addition to his organizing work, Santos has experience in public affairs and communications after serving as Western Region press secretary at the DNC and as the deputy spokesperson for the international anti-ISIS coalition in Baghdad, Iraq.
For a list of other VA officials and their acting roles, go to the VA website.