HAMILTON — Thursday, Representative Ryan Zinke, a former Navy Seal, made a stop in the Bitterroot to tour a new veterans’ clinic that opened just last week.
“We're doing a district tour at the VA hospital and talking to both patients and the facility managers, as well as the associate director to see what they need, the challenges ahead,” Zinke said.
Zinke's visit comes after reports earlier this month that thousands of Department of Veterans’ Affairs employees will be laid off as part of the Trump Administration's plan to cut government spending. Zinke said those cuts are because of overspending by the VA under the Biden Administration.
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“The recent bill that was passed by the House, we filled the hole, but we're asking why they overspent. So, I think it's a fair question, that all departments should look at where there's waste, fraud and abuse,” Zinke said. “But, my concern always is the frontline to make sure the medical providers and the nurses have what they need to deliver service."
That viewpoint was disputed by a group of protesters who were also at the VA Clinic Thursday morning, voicing concerns over the local impact of potential federal cuts.
"You can see by the crowd, we're senior citizens. We have participated in this democracy for decades and decades and we're really upset about the effect on federal workers, the effect on our county, the effect on our democracy,” said Linda Schmitt, chair of the Ravalli County Democrats. “In addition we want to thank John Tester for bringing this VA clinic here to this valley.”
Schmitt told MTN she is worried about the future of the clinic if proposed cuts take place in the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
“We just pray that under this administration, it will be staffed and continue to be staffed. Alread,y veterans have told me that they're losing some of their disability. I mean, that's just a crime,” Schmitt said. “They worked so hard, suffered, sacrificed and they got injured. They have to be taken care of. And so we want to say that to Congressman Zinke.”
Congressman Zinke sits on the House committee that decides federal funding. He said providing services to veterans is a priority for him.
“There's a lot of issues with the veterans community and I think Montana is up the challenge and certainly these clinics help too,” Zinke said. “But, again, from a former commander's perspective, it's good to go to the frontline and see what's going on at the frontline and this clinic here represents the frontline.”
