Former Veterans Affairs secretary David Shulkin admitted Sunday President Trump firing him over social media was “a surprise” given they had spoken “just a few hours before” to schedule a meeting.
“We actually spoke the day that he sent the tweet out, just a few hours before,” Shulkin told NBC. “We had set up a meeting for the very next day where I was going to meet with him at 11 in the morning.”
“I had no intention of giving up,” Shulkin continued. “There would be no reason for me to resign. I made a commitment, I took an oath, and I was here to fight for our veterans.”
Trump announced Shulkin’s departure on Twitter Wednesday, adding Navy Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson — who has served as White House physician for former Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, as well as Trump — would be nominated as Shulkin’s replacement.
While reiterating his denial that he misused taxpayer money for a trip to Europe with his wife in July, Shulkin acknowledged limiting VA political appointees’ access to him if they had demonstrated that they were no longer “willing” to work “effectively” with his team.
ON #MTP: Fired Secretary of Veterans Affairs, @SecShulkin says he did limit access to VA political appointees who were no longer “willing to be working effectively” with his team pic.twitter.com/kcpzh8DDPa
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) April 1, 2018
Shulkin also described his successor as “a good man.”
“I think that he should continue to have the veterans’ interests at heart. This is a very tough job,” he said of Jackson.
