Late Monday afternoon a news story broke that left many furious, the head of the Veteran’s Administration was caught on video saying he doesn’t think the wait times for medical care matter. “Days to an appointment is really not what we should be measuring,” said Secretary Bob McDonald heartlessly, “When you go to Disney, do they measure the number of hours you wait in line...What's important is, what is your satisfaction with the experience?” And of the big three networks, NBC was the only one who did not give the story any time at all during their evening news broadcast.
“An inspector general's report from February found that at one outpatient clinic in Colorado Springs, Colorado, out of 450 cases, 288 veterans waited over 30 days for a consult or appointment,” CBS’s Julianna Goldman reported. Goldman also reported that McDonald’s comments drew swift condemnation from Republican leaders. “House Speaker Paul Ryan tweeted, "This is not make-believe, Mr. Secretary. Veterans have died waiting in those lines,” Goldman repeated.