WASHINGTON – President Bush has appointed Gordon H. Mansfield as the acting deputy secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Mansfield currently serves as VA's assistant secretary for congressional and legislative affairs.
"Gordon has played a key role in our accomplishments for veterans, helping secure record budget gains and shepherding a legislative agenda to improve services and benefits for veterans," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi. "We have challenges ahead, and veterans have an advocate in Gordon Mansfield who will ensure their needs are a priority."
The deputy secretary, VA’s second-highest post, oversees the day-to-day operations of the department, which has a budget of nearly $60 billion and 230,000 employees.
Mansfield was nominated Nov. 3 to become VA's deputy secretary. He has served as VA’s assistant secretary for congressional and legislative affairs since August 2001.
Before coming to VA, Mansfield served as executive director of the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA). In that position, he oversaw the daily operation of PVA's national office in Washington, D.C., and 37 field offices. He held a number of positions at PVA from 1981 to 1989, and served as the organization's first associate executive director of government relations.
He was an assistant secretary for fair housing and equal opportunity at the Department of Housing and Urban Development from 1989 to 1993.
Mansfield received his undergraduate degree from Villanova University and law degree from the University of Miami, and practiced law in Ocala, Fla. Following his 1964 enlistment in the Army, he served two tours of duty in Vietnam.
While serving as company commander with the 101st Airborne Division, he received a spinal cord injury during the Tet offensive of 1968. His combat decorations include the Distinguished Service Cross, the Bronze Star, two Purple Hearts, the Combat Infantryman's Badge and the Presidential Unit Citation.
Mansfield is a recipient of the Presidential Distinguished Service Award and the Villanova University Alumni Human Relations Medal. He was inducted into the U.S. Army Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame in 1997.
