Lawmakers on Wednesday continued their assault on the Department of Veterans Affairs, demanding explanations into why the agency took three weeks to tell 26.5 million veterans and their spouses that personal information has been compromised.
“For millions of veterans, 19 days of delay is 18 days too long to have to wait to learn that their personal information is at risk,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., adding that President Bush should call VA Secretary Jim Nicholson “into the woodshed for a serious shakeup into how the VA is run.”
Nicholson said Wednesday that he was “outraged” that he was not immediately informed about the May 3 burglary of data, which included Social Security numbers, from a VA employee’s home in Maryland. The Associated Press has reported that Nicholson wasn’t told of the matter until May 16.
He said Wednesday that the department is under an “extensive review up and down the chain of command” by the VA Inspector General.
