Shortchanging customer experience
It takes money to hire and properly train customer service representatives. When sequestration hit, that was one of the first areas that took hits in my agency. My agency runs itself on less than one-third of the estimated Food Stamp fraud amount (our budget is about $1 billion). Re-prioritization of funds only takes you so far when you have those darn things called laws that force you to do lesser priority items.
- HHR
Rewiring America’s gateway
The CIO [at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services] is more interested in attending conferences and marketing himself rather than fixing the real problems. The guy has been there for five years and is still in the cloud, and not the good kind.
- Former Contractor
I retired from the Border Patrol in 1995, before the creation of the Homeland Security Department’s Customs and Border Protection. They had made several half-assed attempts to use those “newfangled” things—computers—with little success. The problem seemed to be that instead of hiring outside experts to build the systems, they’d try to get some in-house “computer expert” to do it. Almost every attempt was a costly failure with useless systems. You’d think that in the approximately 25 years since then they would have learned a few things.
- blyvl
Fixing veteran care
Trouble is, if you’re not the ONE veteran they’re serving out of thousands, you’re screwed. As someone eligible for VA care since 1973, I am very glad I have been able to get health care through my job. We should CLOSE all VA medical facilities. Sell them to the private sector, with the staffs. Give every vet entitled to care a Federal Blue Cross card with no deductible. Then you increase the ability of the private sector, RADICALLY improve the care and get vets what they have earned.
- thedadinator
This problem has been discussed off and on for over 10 years with no visible change—it’s shameful how we treat our vets. I blame the lack of care for my father’s ill health. Due to three months of inflammation he lost his eyesight. Once sick it’s a slow decline. But, heck, they don’t care to assist a 91-year-old man.
- TMVA
Badgering the witnesses
Some congressional committees are so busy “grandstanding” on issues that they don’t have time for real legislative business important to the country. They weren’t elected to grandstand or score political points, but to attend to this nation’s business.
- Euphemia
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