Bernie Sanders Blames Koch Brothers for Pressure on Shinseki to Resign

Noah RothmanMay 30th, 2014, 11:02 am
 

As the scandal over falsified waiting lists continues to engulf the Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Sec. Eric Shinseki is facing mounting calls for his resignation from even members of President Barack Obama’s party. On MSNBC on Friday, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) blamed veterans groups and the Koch brothers for the increasing pressure leading Democrats to join Republicans in calling for Shinseki to step down.

MSNBC anchor Chris Jansing asked Sanders if the pressure on Shinseki to resign from lawmakers and veterans’ groups had become overwhelming.

“Some veterans’ groups and some veterans’ groups have not,” Sanders replied. “I do understand, you know, the Republican Party, and the Koch brothers, and others are putting the money into television ads where people are running for reelection or running for election, and it is hard to stand up to that pressure.”

“My own view is that I hope president does not ask for his resignation,” Sanders concluded. “My own view is that I hope he does not resign.”

Watch the clip below via MSNBC:

[Disclosure: Mediaite has worked in the past with the Charles Koch Institute on sponsored panel events about government surveillance efforts and criminal justice reform.]

[Image via screengrab]

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Noah Rothman - Editor

An experienced broadcaster and columnist, Noah Rothman has been providing political opinion and analysis to a variety of media outlets since 2010. His work has appeared in a number of political opinion journals, and he has shared his insights with television and radio personalities across the country.