Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...
False Flag
A scathing audit of the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs office has found millions of taxpayer dollars wasted dates falsified to hide patient delays and years of mismanagement.
And it's possible no one will be punished.
No one for a system that one employee told the Washington Times was a scam allowing the VA to report to Congress, the media, and the America people false progress in eliminating the patient backlog.
The VA 's internal probe is scheduled to be done by the summer.
It says any possible discipline or extra training would result from that investigation.
Quote -- "If we find any intent to do things that show a lack of integrity, then I'm not afraid to take appropriate accountability action."
Executive Decision
Two men who play action hero roles -- one in movies, one in politics -- almost teamed up on the world stage.
BuzzFeed reports, in a meeting with President Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin actually proposed that movie star Steven Seagal be named an honorary consul of Russia and act as an intermediary between the Kremlin and the White House.
President Obama was -- in a word -- flabbergasted.
An official who was at the meeting told BuzzFeed -- quote -- "Our reaction was, 'You've got to be kidding.'"
The tough-guy friendship was previously known. Seagal told the Moscow Times in 2013, that Putin was one of the world's great leaders.
The Incredible Journey
Finally, a long journey comes to an end.
A dog tag lost on a Massachusetts beach has been returned 70 years later to the family of Corporal William Benn.
He died in 2002 and was awarded the Silver Star for his actions during World War Two.
A metal detector operator found the tag after a storm.
He tracked down the owner's family with the help Purple Hearts Reunited -- a Vermont organization dedicated to returning lost or stolen medals.
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