In brief: Official accused of improper influence
WASHINGTON – The No. 2 official at the Homeland Security Department improperly intervened on behalf of foreign investors seeking U.S. visas in three cases involving prominent Democrats, including a company run by the youngest brother of likely Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton, the agency’s inspector general said Tuesday.
Investigators said Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas helped efforts to secure visas in ways that created the appearance of favoritism and special access and caused resentment among career government employees, managers and lawyers.
The agency’s inspector general, John Roth, said he could not suggest a motive for Mayorkas, a longtime Democrat who served on President Barack Obama’s transition team after his 2008 election and was U.S. attorney in California under President Bill Clinton. Roth did not accuse Mayorkas of violating any laws and acknowledged that Mayorkas sometimes declined to become involved in cases because he said he did not think it would be appropriate.
Mayorkas, who at the time was head of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said in a statement that he disagreed with the inspector general’s findings, but “I will certainly learn from it and from this process.”
Mayorkas added: “There was erroneous decision-making and insufficient security vetting of cases. I could not and did not turn my back on my responsibility to address those grave problems. I made improving the program a priority and I did so in a hands-on manner.”
The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said the findings were “extremely concerning” and that he will conduct a congressional hearing about them Thursday. Roth was expected to testify.
VA relaxes rural commuter rule
WASHINGTON – Responding to pressure from Congress and veterans groups, the Department of Veterans Affairs is relaxing a rule that makes it hard for some veterans in rural areas to prove they live at least 40 miles from a VA health site.
The change comes amid complaints from lawmakers and advocates who say the VA’s current policy has prevented thousands of veterans from taking advantage of a new law intended to allow veterans in remote areas to gain access to federally paid medical care from local doctors.
The VA said it will now measure the 40-mile trip by driving miles as calculated by Google maps or other sites, rather than as the crow flies, as currently interpreted. The rule change is expected to roughly double the number of eligible veterans.
“We’ve determined that changing the distance calculation will help ensure more veterans have access to care when and where they want it,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald said in a statement. The change will be unveiled at a hearing Tuesday before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.