Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough plans to stay in his post through Jan. 20 and until then continue to “fight like hell” for veterans as he promised when nominated on Dec. 11, 2020 — although what happens next for the nearly four-year Cabinet secretary remains to be seen.
VA Press Secretary Terrence Hayes confirmed Tuesday that McDonough told employees in a town hall meeting recently that he planned to leave the department after completing “his entire term.”
Bloomberg reported earlier in the day that McDonough said he would leave at the end of the administration, with the headline saying he planned to “step down after the election,” scheduled for Nov. 5.
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According to Hayes, McDonough does not plan to leave the post before the end of Biden’s term.
As a courtesy, cabinet secretaries usually provide letters of resignation in a reelection, or at the end of a presidency if the incoming president is the same political party, to allow the president to make his or her own staff decisions.
Otherwise, their appointments expire at noon on Inauguration Day.
While former President Donald Trump appointed Dr. David Shulkin, the VA’s under secretary for health under the Obama administration, as VA secretary during his term in the White House, it is unlikely he would appoint any current cabinet secretaries to his…
