REPUBLICANS DEMOCRATS DAVID P. ROE, TENNESSEE, CHAIRMAN TIM WALZ, MINNESOTA. RANKING 39011552 at Representatihes COMMITTEE ON AFFAIRS ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS 335 CANNON HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON, DC 20515 August 8, 2018 The Honorable Robert Wilkie Secretary U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs 810 Vermont Avenue NW. Washington, DC. 20420 Dear Secretary Wilkie, We look forward to working with you to improve the delivery of health care and bene?ts to our nation?s veterans. However, we are deeply concerned that three private individuals?all members of Mar-a?Lago, President Trump?s private Palm Beach, Florida club?who are not accountable to veterans or taxpayers and none of whom have served in the Unites States military or government, have been placed in decision-making positions in the Department without nomination by the President or Senate con?rmation. Reports demonstrate they have been granted the power to signi?cantly in?uence policies executed by the Department. Mr. Ike Perlmutter, Chairman and Chief Executive Of?cer of Marvel Entertainment, LLC., Dr. Bruce Moskowitz, an Internal Medicine specialist, and Mr. Marc Sherman, an attorney without health care industry experience, are reported to have ?spoke[n] with VA of?cials daily? and reviewed ?all manner of policy and personnel decisions,? made at VA, according to a recent report published by ProPublica.l They reportedly ?prodded the VA to start new programs? and required VA leaders to go down and kiss the ring,? with that travel paid for by taxpayers. They allegedly caused VA leaders who disagreed with them to lose their jobs or be passed over for promotions, and reportedly ?outed government rules and processes in place to require transparency and accountability. 669 Some of their actions even support allegations that they may have used their in?uence for personal gain. Mr. Perlmutter arranged a VA Veterans Day event at the New York Stock Exchange?in which former VA Secretary Shulkin and other VA of?cials participated?where Marvel Entertainment was promoted. Dr. Moskowitz arranged meetings with VA of?cials and 1 Isaac Arnsdorf, The Shadow Rulers of the VA, ProPublica (Aug. 7, 2018), Apple to promote his son?s app, and arranged weekly conference calls to arrange for VA to continue the work of his non-pro?t. These individuals claim they have ?no direct in?uence over the Department of Veterans Affairs.? However, reports and actions taken by these individuals and VA leaders appear to contradict this statement. Therefore, we are opening an investigation into the extent of Mr. Perlmutter, Dr. Moskowitz, and Mr. Sherman?s in?uence over VA of?cials and the Department. We request unredacted copies of any and all documents, records, memoranda, and correspondence to include electronic correspondence via email and text messages shared with or between any current or former VA employees (including former VA Secretary David Shulkin and the former acting VA Secretary Peter O?Rourke) and Mr. Perlmutter, Dr. Moskowitz, and Mr. Sherman. We request unredacted copies of any and all documents, records, memoranda, and correspondence to include electronic correspondence via email and text message in which Mr. Perlmutter, Dr. Moskowitz, or Mr. Sherman, are mentioned or referenced, by current or former VA employees. We also request copies of any and all records, notes, or minutes of meetings or conference calls in which Mr. Perlmutter, Dr. Moskowitz, or Mr. Sherman participated with VA employees, including any and all meetings with Apple Inc. and Mr. Aaron Moskowitz on the development of an app for locating medical services, and any and all meetings between Dr. Moskowitz, his relatives, and VA of?cials on development of a medical device registry or organization of the June 4, 2018 summit on device registries. Please provide all unredacted correspondence, including an unredacted copy of the VA ethics of?cial?s opinion approving or disapproving former Secretary Shulkin?s participation in the November 7, 2017 event presented by Marvel Entertainment LLC., in which former VA Secretary Shulkin rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange. Please provide all unredacted documents, records, memoranda, and correspondence to include electronic correspondence via email and text messages related to any current or former VA employee travel to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. For each current and former VA employee who participated in of?cial travel to Mar-a-Lago, please provide records of the date in which the travel took place; the reason for the visit and all correspondence to include electronic correspondence via email and text messages related to the reason for the visit; the documents, records, and correspondence pertaining to approval of the trip by VA ethics of?cials, VA Of?ce of General Counsel, or the Of?ce of the Secretary; and the total cost of each trip to the Government. We also request copies of any and all documents, records, memoranda, and correspondence with or between Mr. Perlmutter, Dr. Moskowitz, and Mr. Sherman and current and former VA employees that have been provided to individuals and organizations via Freedom of Information Act request. Please provide the Committee with the documents, materials, and lists of attendees by the close of business Friday, August 31, 2018. Provide the documents in electronic, soft-copy format. Do not alter the documents in any way, including but not limited to applications of redactions or a water mark. Only relevant documents and tangible things should be provided as part of the submission. Also provide the contact information for the individual(s) responsible for assembling the submission. This/These individual(s) shall certify and attest to the accuracy of the submission. The deliverables opened by this request will not be closed until the Committee is suf?ciently satis?ed with the responses provided, including whether the formatting instructions have been adhered to. The Committee reserves the right to, at its discretion, order an alternative organization of the submission. The Department has a continuing duty to supplement the record by providing relevant documents and tangible things to the Committee until the matter is closed. If you have any questions, please contact Grace Rodden, Minority Staff Director of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation, at grace.rodden@mail.house. gov or at (202) 225- 9756. We look forward to your response. Sincerely, . TIDJZ Ranking Member Committee on Veterans? Affairs US. House of Representatives