Keller @ Large: At-Risk Veterans Not Comparable To Disneyland Tourists

BOSTON (CBS) – As a reporter and a citizen, I've always believed that public officials and public agencies have an obligation to answer questions about their policies and performance.

They are, after all, paid by us to do our business.

But in hindsight, maybe it was a mistake to sit Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob McDonald down with a bunch of reporters Monday to discuss his agency's continued inability to do its primary job – providing veterans with the decent, timely medical care they are entitled to.

This meeting came in the wake of a report showing the VA hasn't fixed the problems that led to a 2014 scandal in which 40 vets died awaiting treatment while VA employees were falsifying scheduling data.

But instead of apologizing for – or at least explaining – his failure to make enough progress in nearly two years on the job, McDonald blamed the media and others for making too much of the issue.

"When you go to Disney, do they measure the number of hours you wait in line? Or what's important?" McDonald said. "What's important is what's your satisfaction with the experience?"

No, I'd say what's important is the human toll taken by bureaucratic incompetence, the persistent efforts of that bureaucracy to cover it up, and the appalling insensitivity of the bureaucrat appointed to fix the mess.

McDonald is himself a decorated veteran, and we thank him for his service.

But at-risk veterans are not comparable to Disneyland tourists, and someone who thinks otherwise probably should not be in charge of their care.

This was one press conference that definitely should not have been held.

Listen to Jon's commentary: