Nevada senators vote to confirm political rival for VA job

Nevada’s GOP Senate candidate Sam Brown speaks at the Trump rally held at Lee’s Family Forum in Henderson, Nevada on Thursday, October 31, 2024 Photo by: Brian Ramos

Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al español.

Sam Brown was confirmed Tuesday by the U.S. Senate as one of the three under secretaries for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Brown, a Republican who in November narrowly lost a bid to unseat U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., was confirmed on a 54-44 vote with two senators not voting. Rosen and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., were the lone Democrats to vote in favor of the confirmation.

Brown will serve as the under secretary for memorial affairs, overseeing the network of 150 cemeteries managed by the department. Nevada’s sole national cemetery is in Elko, though it’s under construction. Boulder City has its own VA grant-funded location.

Brown wrote on social media after his confirmation that he was “humbled and honored to give you all my best.”

“After the Senate confirmed my nomination to be Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs tonight, I prayed with my family to thank God for guiding us to this point,” Brown wrote, attaching a photo of himself at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City.

Brown, a former U.S. Army captain and Purple Heart recipient, served in Afghanistan, where a roadside bomb exploded beneath his vehicle’s fuel tank, leaving approximately 30% of his body scarred.

Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., chair of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, said Brown is prepared for the new role.

“Capt. Sam Brown understands the sacrifices made every day by the men and women in the U.S. military,” Moran said before the confirmation. “I am grateful to Capt. Brown for his service to our country, for his sacrifice and now for his willingness to continue serving our country in this new capacity.”

Shortly after casting her vote, Cortez Masto sent Brown a letter requesting an update on the Elko site. She said the most recent update was last October and that, since then, there’s been no updated timeline shared with the public.

Cortez Masto requested information on any delays, efforts to work with “local and tribal stakeholders,” and what might be needed from the federal government to “ensure the project remains on schedule.”

“Veterans in the Elko region currently face long travel times to access burial and memorial services, with no national or state veterans’ cemeteries in the region,” Cortez Masto wrote. “The Elko cemetery project is a crucial step toward closing that gap.”

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