The VA Chief of Staff is the Secretary’s principal senior advisor and top operations coordinator for the Department. Formal duties (per VA guidance and staff biographies) include advising the Secretary and Deputy Secretary, synchronizing and coordinating Secretary policy guidance across VA administrations and staff offices, overseeing development of strategy and policy implementation, managing day‑to‑day operations and senior leadership coordination, and facilitating internal and external communications and resource alignment.
A 'sherpa' is an experienced political aide or sponsor who guides a nominee through the Senate confirmation process — arranging and preparing meetings with senators, coordinating paperwork and vetting, coaching the nominee for hearings, managing logistics and messaging, and serving as the main point person between the nominee and Senate offices.
VA reports backlogs and related performance metrics using its internal program data and public dashboards (VBA claims inventories, processing counts, wait‑time measures and health‑care scheduling/eligibility reports). Those figures are published by VA (dashboards, press releases and fiscal reports) and can be independently reviewed by the VA Office of Inspector General, GAO, and congressional oversight; verification typically involves checking VA dashboards, OIG/GAO audits, and published annual/quarterly reports.
No. The White House/agency chief of staff positions are generally appointed senior executive jobs and do not require Senate confirmation; VA has not listed Chief of Staff as a Senate‑confirmed position, so Curt Cashour would not need Senate confirmation to become VA Chief of Staff.
VA has not announced a named replacement for Curt Cashour as Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs. If a vacancy occurs, VA would typically appoint an acting official from within the office until a permanent replacement is named (and, if the permanent role requires Senate confirmation, the President nominates and the Senate confirms).
VA will follow standard federal succession and staffing practices: Cashour’s move is effective immediately upon Syrek’s departure (Feb. 13, 2026); VA can designate acting officials for any resulting vacancies and launch searches (internal detail, competitive hiring, or presidential nomination if needed). Formal timelines vary by office; VA often posts announcements and uses internal commissions or recruitment processes for senior roles and, when required, pursues presidential nomination and Senate confirmation.