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Anjali Shastry

Anjali Shastry

ashastry@washingtontimes.com

Anjali Shastry covers Capitol Hill politics for The Washington Times. Originally from Cupertino, California, Shastry graduated from University of California, Santa Barbara, with a bachelor's degree in English and anthropology, and from University of Maryland, College Park, with a master's degree in journalism. She has previously written for American Journalism Review, Voice of America and the University of Maryland's Capital New Service wire. She can be reached at ashastry@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Anjali Shastry

Veteran Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald. (Associated Press) ** FILE **

VA problems continue despite public pressure, IG reports say

In the wake of backlash against the Department of Veterans Affairs for not cracking down hard enough on employee accountability, its watchdog group released three new reports this week that demonstrate continuing problems at VA hospitals.

December 4, 2015
In this Nov. 7, 2014 file photo, Jon Stewart poses in New York. Fresh from “The Daily Show,” Stewart has signed on with HBO in an exclusive four-year production pact. HBO said Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015, the partnership will start with short-form digital content to be showcased on HBO Now, HBO Go and other platforms. — FILE (Photo by Victoria Will/Invision/AP, File)

Jon Stewart joins first responders in call to renew 9/11 health care act

Joined by lawmakers and former "Daily Show" host Jon Stewart, irate 9/11 first responders gathered on Capitol Hill Thursday to demand that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan restore a program in upcoming budget talks giving health care to first responders who dealt with the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

December 3, 2015
Veterans Administration Secretary Sloan Gibson. (Associated Press) ** FILE **

Veterans Affairs says Choice plan too complicated

The VA said Wednesday that it wants to consolidate seven different programs that allow veterans to receive care from private doctors, saying that the operations have become too unwieldy as Congress has added more beneficiaries to the rolls.

December 2, 2015
The seal affixed to the front of the Department of Veterans Affairs building in Washington is seen here on June 21, 2013. (Associated Press) **FILE**

House bill enables VA to reclaim improper bonuses

The chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee introduced a bill Tuesday to give the VA the power to go back and rescind improper bonuses paid out to employees, hoping to recover nearly $400,000 paid to two senior executives who orchestrated their own cushy transfers.

December 1, 2015
Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald talks about the state of the department while speaking at a luncheon at the National Press Club in Washington on Nov. 6, 2015. (Associated Press) **FILE**

VA expands Choice program for veterans

The Department of Veterans Affairs on Tuesday expanded the pool of veterans who can use the new Choice Program to get care at private hospitals and clinics, as the troubled department moved to firmly embrace the reforms Congress passed last year to clean up the wait-list scandal.

December 1, 2015
Sen. James Lankford, Oklahoma Republican, on Monday released "Federal Fumbles," a report that highlights examples of wasteful or duplicative spending and burdensome regulations, and also offers his policy solution to each of the problems. (Associated Press)

James Lankford’s ‘Federal Fumbles’ targets federal waste, overreach

From federal regulations governing the taking of pictures with llamas, to taxpayer-funded studies of small woodland birds, there's plenty of waste still left to be trimmed out of the government, Sen. James Lankford said Monday as he released his inaugural "Federal Fumbles" report calling out the government's bizarre and bogus decisions.

November 30, 2015
Rep. Jeff Miller, Florida Republican and chair of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. (Associated Press) ** FILE **

Jeff Miller: VA should have fired 2 senior execs and recovered the 400K in bonuses

House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jeff Miller said Tuesday that the VA botched a chance to clean up its act when it demoted two senior executives but didn't fire them nor try to recover nearly $400,000 in relocation bonuses investigators say they didn't deserve because they orchestrated sweetheart transfers to new posts.

November 24, 2015
Rep. Christopher H. Smith, New Jersey Republican. (Associated Press) ** FILE **

Tool to return abducted children from overseas underused, State Dept. told

The Obama administration isn't using a new tool Congress approved in 2014 to bring back children abducted and taken abroad by a parent, a prominent victims' rights advocate told the House on Thursday, saying the State Department's preference for "quiet diplomacy" falls short.

November 20, 2015
Deputy Veterans Affairs Secretary Sloan Gibson speaks during a news conference during a visit to a Denver veterans hospital. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley, File)

VA comes around on Choice Card program

The VA on Wednesday finally embraced the Choice Card program Congress created in the wake of last year's wait-time scandal, but said it will need some changes to clean up a convoluted bureaucracy and make the program sustainable for the long run.

November 18, 2015
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley delivers a speech on "Lessons from the New South" during a luncheon at at the National Press Club in Washington on Sept. 2, 2015. (Associated Press)

Shalabh Kumar launches Republican Hindu Coalition

Prominent businessman Shalabh "Shalli" Kumar said he's donating $2 million to Republican candidates in the run-up to next year's elections as he announced the formation Tuesday of the Republican Hindu Coalition, hoping to turn Indian-Americans into a powerful voting bloc.

November 17, 2015
Illustration on dealing with sexual assaults in the military by Donna Grethen/Tribune Content Agency

Lawmakers, advocates clash over VA sexual-assault bill

Members of Congress clashed with veterans' rights advocates who objected Tuesday to a bill giving veterans who are victims of sexual assault in the military the chance to skip the VA and get treatment at private clinics on the government's dime.

November 17, 2015