The Secretary of Veterans Affairs has overruled a directive by the VA's senior operating officer requiring the removal of an iconic World War II photograph of a sailor kissing a nurse on V-J Day in Times Square.

Secretary Denis McDonough took to "X," the social media platform previously known as Twitter, to declare, "“This image is not banned from VA facilities — and we will keep it in VA facilities.”

The sequence of events started with a February 29 memo from Assistant Under Secretary for Health for Operations RimaAnn Nelson. "Recent discussions," she said, without elaborating who held such discussions, "have highlighted concerns about the non-consensual nature of the kiss, prompting debates on consent and the appropriateness of celebrating such images in today's environment, especially within institutions, such as VHA facilities, which are committed to upholding standards of creating a safe and respectful environment." She went on to claim, "Employees have expressed discomfort with the display of this photograph, suggesting that its presence could be construed as a tacit endorsement of the inappropriate behavior it depicts." Therefore, she said, "Please ensure that these photographs are promptly removed and facilities explore suitable replacements that honor our history and veterans in a manner consistent with our values."

EXCLUSIVE:

The Department Of Veterans Affairs just BANNED the V-J Day kiss photo from all department facilities.

"To promote a culture of inclusivity and awareness… your cooperation is vital." pic.twitter.com/MZfNHbpV76

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) March 5, 2024

Now, the Biden administration is banning this photo, "V-J Day in Times Square" by Alfred Eisenstaedt from all @DeptVetAffairs facilities. (There is concern that the woman in the photo did not give formal consent to being kissed.) pic.twitter.com/doFUO5nlkm

— ReporterMcCabe (@NeilWMcCabe2) March 5, 2024

When the memo first appeared and was shortly followed by Secretary McDonough's response, it gave the impression that the memo hadn't been issued. A report from Military Times cleared that up.

Officials said the memo should not have been sent out and was formally rescinded on Tuesday. They did not provide details of whether senior leaders were consulted on the matter ahead of Nelson’s memo.

Not only is the memo itself deserving of ridicule. The author is a professional trainwreck who exhibits all of the f***-up-move-up syndrome so common to our Civil Service.

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

She presided over a catastrophic exposure of VA patients to HIV while chief of the St. Louis VA Medical Center. 

A VA Office of Inspector General report verified that 1,812 patients were potentially affected in 2010 by breaches in the cleaning and sterilization of medical equipment over a period of months at John A. Cochran VA Medical Center. They faced possible exposure to hepatitis and HIV infections.

The VA removed her after a political outcry and hid her in a tiny VA facility in the Philippines. She was rehabilitated and given responsibility for the massive Phoenix VA Medical Center, which promptly became embroiled in a crisis. What happens when you continually screw up in high-profile management jobs in the VA? You end up in charge of all VA medical operations.

For now, this small part of our patrimony is safe from the wokesters who control the federal bureaucracy. I really hope some of Trump's staff can take time out from calling Ron DeSantis and his supporters names and start making a list of people who have to go if Trump wins.