00:00Thanks. Let me ask you, if confirmed, will you launch an investigation into Secretary
00:12Collins' mass termination of employees, which have been found illegal by the courts?
00:20Senator Blumenthal, thank you for that question. If confirmed, the responsibility of the IG
00:25is to look at all concerns and issues that it brings up itself, whereas the committee brings up
00:32others. I'm asking you about the terminations in particular. Will you launch an investigation into
00:36those terminations? If there are terminations that impact the benefits and care and service to
00:41veterans that are improper, IG will look into them. They've been found to be illegal. Won't you
00:46investigate? Well, I would investigate, but some of those issues are currently in litigation with
00:51the courts, and so it wouldn't be appropriate for me to comment on them at this time. Will you
00:55investigate the Secretary's proposed reorganization? Thank you for the question,
01:02Senator Blumenthal. I can't investigate anything until the action occurs, so OIG would definitely
01:08look at that with the team and assess whether there needs to be an investigation into that.
01:12Well, you can investigate actions that are taken preliminarily to a final plan or action. Let me
01:19ask you, have you had any role in either the firings of VA employees to date?
01:28No, I have not, Senator. And what about the plans to fire as many as 83,000 more? Thank you for the
01:36question. I have not had a role in any of those activities. Those activities were handled by
01:40the HRA team and general counsel. Have you participated in the realignment of senior executive
01:47service staff across the board, VBA, and office of general counsel? Thank you for the question,
01:55Senator. The situation there was the acting secretary decided to direct some changes across the
02:01administrations and staff offices under the president's executive order to restore accountability
02:07to the career SESs and implement and follow the 1979 SES Act. And he felt that it was important to
02:17reassign some of these people to ensure collaboration. I don't understand. Have you played a role in that
02:22realignment? My role was to convey the reassignments to the staff offices that were in my portfolio.
02:30So you have participated in those actions? I did not participate. I conveyed the acting
02:35secretary's direction to reassign those people. Okay, we can argue about words here, but I think you get
02:41my point, which is you're unwilling to review mass firings which have been found to be illegal. You are
02:48unwilling to be forthright in your responses to these questions. You served the secretary of the VA, correct?
02:56I served as a senior advisor to the secretary of VA for a period of time, but again, as I explained,
03:02my role was... And to his team? I'm sorry, to his team? You served as an advisor to him and you've worked
03:09with his team, correct? I served as advisor to the secretary and I advised those within my portfolio
03:15as to the directions the secretary directed. And you've considered yourself to be a loyal aide, correct?
03:23I consider myself to be an impartial independent aide to the department because that's my role.
03:30You consider yourself to be a loyal aide, correct? I am loyal to the veterans. That's who I serve.
03:36That's who I'm loyal to. You work for him? I work for the president and the secretary, but I also,
03:42if confirmed as IG, will work for this committee.
03:47Have you been involved in the request of VA employees to sign non-disclosure agreements?
03:55Senator, I have not.
03:57You have had no involvement?
03:59I have had no involvement in that activity.
04:01What is your involvement in the reorganization and the rifts that Secretary Collins has planned?
04:09Senator Blumenthal, I have had no involvement in that activity.
04:13What have you done?
04:14Well, again, my information, my role as senior advisor is to gather information. When you look at how-
04:20Like you haven't been earning your pay.
04:22Well, I have because the department is quite siloed, as you know, and VBA is very siloed.
04:29But what have you done?
04:30So I've been investigating and looking at VBA and providing advice to the VBA leadership, as well
04:37as other careerists at the board and at National Cemetery Administration. So I've been earning my pay,
04:4412-hour days, almost every day.
04:45You have been earning your pay as a loyal advisor, a member of the Collins team, an employee at his behest,
04:55a political appointee, not as a career civil servant. You are a political appointee as Inspector General.
05:04And that is why I will object to your nomination. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
05:08Thank you, Senator.
05:09Senator Tuberville.
05:11Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
05:12Ms. Mason, thanks for being here.
05:14The Office of Inspector General recently put out a report highlighting report-
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