Thursday, August 26, 2010
Having lost faith in the U.S. Army to properly run Arlington National Cemetery, veterans groups and members of Congress are raising the idea of transferring management of the renowned military graveyard to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Under the Army’s watch, Arlington has experienced numerous controversies, including the mishandling of more than 200 graves and the wasting of millions of dollars on technology contracts and mismanagement.
Officials with The American Legion and members of Congress, including Representative Ike Skelton (D-Missouri), chairman of the Armed Services Committee, feel the VA’s National Cemetery Administration (NCA) may be better suited to operate Arlington, the nation’s busiest military cemetery, which has an average of 27 funerals a day and 4 million visitors annually.
The NCA already manages 131 cemeteries nationwide with 3 million graves. All but two of the Army’s cemeteries, Arlington and the Airmen’s Home National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., were transferred to the VA in 1973.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Veterans Groups and Lawmakers Suggest That VA Take Over Arlington Cemetery (by Christian Davenport, Washington Post)
Arlington Cemetery Official Quits before Senate Testimony (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
211 Bodies Misplaced and Misidentified at Arlington Cemetery (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
Millions of Dollars Wasted at Arlington Cemetery (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
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