four young men on long island, new york. now learning two females lured the victims into the park last april where gang members attacked them with that chets, knives and wooden clubs. prosecutors could seek the death penalty. officials say several suspects are in the country illegally. republicans trying to increase military spending to keep america safe. but democrat nancy pelosi says they are trying to insight violence with their proposed budget. we take an oath to protect and defend. whatever the mission is, whatever we need as president kennedy said. but that s not the point of this. this is supposed to be a budget that prevents the spread of violence. instead, they have a budget that stirs it up. jillian: the g.o.p. budget would add almost $30 billion to president trump s nearly $700 billion request for national defense next year. the healthcare of hundreds of our veterans now in jeopardy after a burst pipe cripples a v.a. hospital in new hampshire.
charges were filed for the diversion of 4,000 oxycodone pills and 3300 hydrocodone pills from just one veteran s hospital, all destined to be sold on the street according to the indictment. the alleged cup pritlprits. v.a. employees. one person altered and signed the purchase invoices and coordinated with the others placing the drugs in a nondescript bag in a prearranged location at the hospital. all three pleaded not guilty. opioid addiction is just a portion of the prescriptions filled every year. why are the veterans not being better protected? it s clear to me and everybody in the room, the v.a., god bless them, they re doing a horrible job with this issue. a report on potential causes for drug loss was detailed in a
on condition of anonymity. she suffers from chronic arthritis and knows what she did was horrible, adding, i am just a person who suffers from drug addiction and tried to self-medicate my pain. cases like this are a growing concern as opioid addiction and the drug s administrate values increase nationwide. drug diversion has been a major problem at not only v.a. hospitals but hospitals across the country. we are very aggressively pursuing those who divert drugs to ensure that justice is served. according to court documents obtained by cnn a v.a. nurse in virginia admitted that on occasion she, quote, would only administer some oxycodone tablets to the patient and keep the remainder for her own personal use. there are controls, but the controls are only as good as the people implementing it, overseeing it. it is not just nurses. we are seeing a number of people who work in v.a. pharmacies involved in diverting drugs. that s where they just steal them. last month in arkansas,
house hearing. over a 14-month period one facilitate missed 43% of retired inspections. the operating rooms in one facility, for example, were not expected at all because of their conflicting work schedules. in addition the accountability office found insufficient training for those who do the inspections for drug loss. the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. caroline clancy, a v.a. deputy undersecretary for health acknowledged drug diversion is a problem but touted the v.a. s response and vowed to boost v.a. drug testing. the use of illegal drugs by v.a. employees is inconsistent with the special trust placed in those who care for veterans. stealing painkillers from veterans in pain. be sure to follow me on facebook and twitter @jaketapper or tweet the show @theleadcnn. that s it for the lead.
i think it is a good system. it is not a good system. how can you say i think it is a good system. really? yes, i do. not if you re a veteran, it s not a good system. this happening as the office of special counsel sends a scathing letter to the president blasting the v.a. for ignoring whistle-blower warnings. the letter says phoenix v.a. officials failure to act is part of a troubling pattern nationwide. acting secretary sloan gibson ordering review of the system to handle whistle-blower complaints. house democrats want you to pay the legal fees for illegal immigrant children. this measure is led by new york representative jeffreys. democrats introducing a bill that would give illegal minors taxpayer-funded lawyers. they claim nearly half of the thousands of children crossing the border have legitimate reasons for being here even though they came here illegally. it s estimated that 90,000 illegal minors will try to cross the border into our country this year alone. a