Veterans Affairs News
The Daily Signal provides coverage of how America serves its veterans, including reporting on reforms, challenges, and success stories within the VA system.
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EXCLUSIVE: VA Houses Largest Number of Homeless Veterans Since 2019
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The Department of Veterans Affairs has permanently housed the largest number of homeless veterans since 2019. The VA housed 51,936 veterans experiencing homelessness in fiscal year 2025, the agency announced in a news release first provided to The Daily Signal. This represents the largest number since fiscal year 2019 and 4,011…Tyler O’Neil -
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Payroll Costs of the Federal Swamp Exploded 24% During Biden Era
There were 5% more federal workers—2.77 million in 2020 to 2.90 million in 2025—when President Joe Biden left the White House, but the costs of paying this vast legion of bureaucrats exploded 24% during the same period, according to a new report by a nonprofit government watchdog. Much of the skyrocketing payroll costs is due to spiking…Mark Tapscott -
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Government Shutdown Ends With Trump’s Signature Hours After House Passes Funding Bill
The longest government shutdown in history is over after President Donald Trump signed a bill to fund the government into law on Wednesday night, just hours after the House of Representatives passed the measure. “Today, we’re sending a clear message that we will never give in to extortion,” Trump said before signing the bill. “The…Bradley Devlin -
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With These 3 Bills, Arizona’s Biggs Salutes Veterans
Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., has introduced three bills intended to enhance the well-being of American veterans through improvements in burial procedures, oversight of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and vets’ health care. “As Veterans Day approaches, Congress must recommit to honoring our nation’s heroes not just in word, but in deed,” Biggs told The Daily Signal….Jacob Adams -
- Opinion
Strengthening Veteran Mental Health: A Vital Mission
Every morning, the secretaries of Veterans Affairs and War receive updates on suicides among service members and veterans. The numbers paint a dire picture of mental health across the armed forces. The Department of War’s most recent data, released in its 2024 Annual Report on Suicide in the Military, reported 523 suicides across the Total…Mo Syed -
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Senate Defeats Schumer-led Opposition to Opening Government; Funding Bill Heads to House
The government shutdown is another step closer to coming to an end after the Senate voted in favor of a bill to fund the government. The Senate passed a measure that would fund the entire government through Jan. 30 by a vote of 60 to 40 on Monday night. Thirty-eight Senate Democrat Caucus members, led…Bradley Devlin -
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Senate Votes to Put Congress on Path Toward Ending Government Shutdown
A bipartisan group of senators voted 60-40 to approve a key procedural measure that puts legislation reopening the government on track to pass the Senate. Eight Democrat senators—Illinois’ Dick Durbin, Maine’s Angus King, Nevada’s Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, New Hampshire’s Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen, Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman, and Virginia’s Tim Kaine—joined 52…Tyler O’Neil -
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EXCLUSIVE: Trump on Track to Recoup $10M Improperly Paid to Agency’s Senior Executives Under Biden
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The Biden administration’s Department of Veterans Affairs improperly awarded $10.8 million in bonuses meant for staffers who directly serve veterans to highly paid senior executives. Under President Donald Trump, the agency is close to recovering the remainder of the lost funds. The VA improperly awarded $10.8 million in “critical skills incentives”…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
- Opinion
Will the Democrats Finally Have a Primary in 2028?
Democrats haven’t had a real primary since 2008, and I’m not bullish on the chances for a real contest in 2028, either. By contrast, Donald Trump took the Republican Party by storm in 2016 and 2024, and he has reinvigorated the party and reshaped American politics, becoming the most influential political figure since … the…Tyler O’Neil -
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As Shutdown Pain Intensifies, Republicans Ratchet Up Pressure on Dems
After a half-dozen votes by Democrats against a short-term continuing resolution to reopen the federal government, Republicans are turning up the temperature on them, accusing Democrats of relishing the suffering of the American people. “The Democrats are playing games. It’s political theater today. They’ve reduced America’s pain to a political prop,” House Speaker Mike Johnson,…George Caldwell -
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EXCLUSIVE: Lawsuit Aims to Force Veterans Affairs to Disclose Information Related to Diverting Resources to Illegal Aliens Under Biden
The Veterans Affairs Department is facing a lawsuit after failing to disclose information related to the department’s alleged improper use of medical resources during the Biden administration to benefit illegal immigrants. Following a Daily Signal report in August 2024, a policy organization in Washington asked the VA for more information related to its reputed…Virginia Allen -
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Shutdown Exposes Democrats’ True Love: Illegal Aliens
It’s hard to believe, but true: Democrats love illegal aliens more than Big Government itself. The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives passed a “clean” continuing resolution on Sept. 19 on a vote of 217-212. It would have kept the federal government open through Nov. 21, well past fiscal year 2025’s conclusion on Sept. 30. Republicans performed their responsibility to finance Uncle Sam’s activities, from Social Security to…Deroy Murdock -
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Shutdown Becomes a Big Apple Battle
Amid a government shutdown fight that highlights disagreements between New York-born President Donald Trump and two Democrat leaders from New York in Congress, the Empire State has found itself in the spotlight. After Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., denied Republicans his party’s votes necessary to pass a stopgap funding bill to keep the government…George Caldwell -
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Government Set to Furlough Almost 750,000 Employees
As the threat of government shutdown looms, the Department of Veterans Affairs says it will continue providing most services, even as nearly three quarters of a million federal employees throughout the government are furloughed. In a public contingency plan, the VA estimated 97% of its employees will keep working even without government funding, allowing medical…Mary Mobley -
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This Federal Bureaucrat Allegedly Lied About Taking Money From His Union
An employee at the Department of Veterans Affairs who also led a public-sector union in Texas allegedly lied on a form about taking money from his union. He faces charges of making false statements and theft. Terry Lendo, then president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 1745 union, reportedly filled out a form…Tyler O’Neil -
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What Biden Chief of Staff Reveals to House Panel on Jill and Hunter
Former President Joe Biden’s White House chief of staff told a congressional panel Thursday that he asked the White House physician about a full medical and cognitive exam after Biden’s disastrous June 2024 debate with Donald Trump. Jeff Zients is the last scheduled witness to take questions from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee…Fred Lucas -
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Over 70 GOP Lawmakers Commend Veterans Affairs Chief for Ending Biden Abortion Rule
More than 70 members of Congress have sent a public letter to Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins supporting his effort to end a Biden-era rule that allowed Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers to perform abortions. The members’ letter—spearheaded by Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., and signed onto by 13 other Republican senators and 57…Jacob Adams -
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Swamp vs. Trump: IRS Union Sues to Reverse Executive Order
Another chapter in President Donald Trump’s clash with what he calls the Washington, D.C., “swamp” is heading to court, this time, from the union representing mostly Internal Revenue Service employees. The National Treasury Employees Union filed a lawsuit Wednesday in federal court in the District of Columbia. The Treasury Department was among the departments included in…Fred Lucas -
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In Celebration of Labor Day, Trump Cabinet Members Share Their First Jobs
Just in time for Labor Day weekend, the White House published a video Friday on YouTube featuring Trump Cabinet members sharing their first jobs and lessons learned. “I wanted to be a cheerleader in high school, and I couldn’t afford the uniform,” Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer recalled, opening the video. “So my first job…Lorenzo Prieto -
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EXCLUSIVE: Veterans Affairs Hails Historic Caseload Processing Achievement
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—President Donald Trump’s Department of Veterans Affairs processed more disability benefits compensation and pension ratings claims in a single year than ever before, The Daily Signal has learned. “Under President Trump, VA is making major improvements to better serve veterans, and this announcement underscores that fact,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell