Woke V.A. Official Has a Questionable Past When It Comes to Taking Care of Veterans

Taking care of America's veterans is something a majority of Americans agree is a top priority — unless you are a supporter of the Biden administration, in which case you prioritize illegal immigrants over veterans and, in some cases, wokeness as well. But as has become the norm, when someone in the Biden administration issues some ridiculous woke policy, and they catch heat for it, if you look a little further, it is not the first time that official has displayed an extraordinary amount of incompetence. Here is the latest example of that pattern.

If you’re an American, you’ve seen the iconic photograph.

The Veterans Administration tried to ban it from Govt facilities.

Why?

Catering to obscene political correctness… pic.twitter.com/BeDmB2mmLa
— Steve Cortes (@CortesSteve) March 5, 2024

Recently, Assistant Under Secretary for Health Operations RimaAnn Nelson issued a memo to all VA healthcare facilities that the iconic WWII-era photo of a sailor kissing a nurse in New York's Times Square on Victory Over Japan (V-J) Day in 1945 had to be taken down in those facilities because Nelson claimed that the photo violated, “the VA’s no-tolerance policy towards domestic violence, sexual harassment, and assault.” The move caused such an intense backlash that Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dennis McDonough promptly went over Nelson's head and took to X to rescind the order. His tweet read, "Let me be clear: This image is not banned from VA facilities — and we will keep it in VA facilities.”

In keeping with Biden administration officials' patterns of incompetence, this was not RimaAnn Williams's first go-around. The curiosity over who would have issued something so inane forced a look into Nelson's history. It's not only like you would expect, it's worse. Williams served as acting director of the John Cochran VA Medical Center in St. Louis from 2009-2013. In 2010, a whistleblower came forward and reported that the Medical Center had exposed roughly 1,800 veterans to diseases like HIV, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C due to improper sterilization practices. In 2011, Cochran was forced to stop performing surgeries for over a month when rusty surgical trays were found. No explanation was given as to why the trays continued to be used. Follow-up on the deficiencies “determined that routine environment of care (EOC) inspections did not adequately identify and resolve outstanding deficiencies.” Inspectors also noted that “The EMS cleaning log reflected missed cleanings of the area, and our inspectors’ surgical booties were dirty when they left the area." Anytime someone goes into a sterile area, they are required to wash their hands and then don surgical booties, a sterile gown, a mask, and gloves.

The lunatic at the Biden VA who tried to ban the V-J Day kiss photo from VA facilities is RimaAnn Nelson. This isn't Nelson's first misadventure at the VA. A decade ago, Nelson potentially exposed up to 1,800 VA patients to HIV and had her facility closed down twice for serious… pic.twitter.com/E8bEsL9kxO
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) March 5, 2024

In 2012, reviews of nurses' personnel files revealed that only half of the required documentation for competency was in the files, and found an overall lack of effective nursing leadership. There were also two 2013 lawsuits involving Cochran VA patients. One claimed that a veteran became paralyzed due to "negligence and delays" of heart surgery, and another alleged a veteran was given needless radiation treatments after a false diagnosis of cancer. Other employees reported veterans not being given the proper personal hygiene for days at a time.

But RimaAnn Williams was not summarily fired for this gross incompetence. In 2016, she was made head of Phoenix, Arizona's VA Medical Center. Several Arizona lawmakers at the time got wind of Williams's job performance in St. Louis and attempted to stop Williams's appointment in Phoenix with a letter to then-President Barack Obama. Williams's appointment in Phoenix went forward, and after the St. Louis facility was ranked the worst in 2016, the Phoenix facility was quickly ranked the worst in 2017.

Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) and Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT), in a letter to Secretary McDonough, have both called for the firing of Williams. But so far, McDonough is reluctant to do so. He responded to the letter by saying, "Rima has dedicated her career to serving Veterans. We are fortunate to have her at VA, and she will remain at VA."

For now, RimaAnn Williams is in Washington D.C. — failing up, pushing papers — and is not directly responsible for the safety and well-being of any of our nation's veterans. But a warning to any VA facilities: If you see her coming, lock the door.