Mike Missal ’78 Tapped As New Inspector General of Veterans Affairs
On Friday, Oct. 2, USAToday reported that Michael Missal, a 1978 graduate of Washington and Lee University, has been nominated by President Barack Obama to be the inspector general of the troubled Department of Veterans Affairs.
Mike, a Washington attorney who specializes in government enforcement and internal investigations, was “selected because he has a distinguished legal background and a proven record of expertly leading prominent, sensitive and extensive investigations,” said a White House official.
The position has been vacant since 2013, and Congress has repeatedly criticized the department for its poor investigations of veterans’ health care and of going after whistleblowers rather than the problems they bring to light.
Mike, a partner at K&L Gates, began his career as a staff assistant to President Jimmy Carter. He then clerked for chief judge H. Carl Moultrie, District of Columbia Superior Court, before serving as senior counsel for the Division of Enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
His extensive résumé includes an appointment by the Justice Department to examine negligence in the bankruptcy of subprime lender New Century Financial Corp. He served as lead counsel investigating the demise of WorldCom, the long-distance phone company. Mike also assisted the Senate Select Committee on Ethics during its investigation of former Sen. John Ensign of Nevada.
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