text: Today's news from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.):  VA Secretary Confirmed: Robert McDonald, President Barack Obama?Ûªs nominee to be the next Veterans Affairs secretary, was confirmed by the Senate Tuesday as Congress prepared to vote on a major bipartisan VA reform bill. The 97-0 confirmation vote came as Congress was poised to approve a $17 billion bill by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Jeff Miller to refurbish the VA and improve veterans' health care, The Associated Press reported.   Why Do You Want This Job?: With his confirmation, McDonald may have been handed the biggest challenge of his life: responsibility for leading a vast federal agency scarred by bureaucratic dysfunction. The previous secretary, Eric Shinseki, resigned under intense bipartisan criticism. The agency was left with such a long list of problems that Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Sanders bluntly asked McDonald at a confirmation hearing last week, ?ÛÏ'Why do you want this job??Û? McDonald, whose life has been a procession of increasingly demanding leadership roles, replied: ''If not me, who?'' according to The New York Times.   House Set to Take Up $17 Billion VA Reform Bill: With a new Veterans Affairs secretary in place, Congress is likely to move quickly to approve a bill to refurbish the VA and improve veterans' health care. The House could vote as early as Wednesday, with a Senate vote soon after. The measure by Sen. Sanders and Rep. Miller includes $10 billion in emergency spending to help veterans who can't get prompt appointments with VA doctors to obtain outside care; $5 billion to hire doctors, nurses and other medical staff; and about $1.5 billion to lease 27 new clinics across the country, AP reported.   Corporate Deserters: Lawmakers are growing tired of corporate America's persistent efforts to dodge U.S. taxes. In the past month, Congress and the White House have denounced a loophole that lets companies lower their tax rate by moving their headquarters overseas. Now, a group of Democrats in Congress want to make sure that any company that incorporates overseas would be barred from doing business with the government. Sen. Carl Levin who introduced the bill in the Senate with Sen. Richard Durbin, The Washington Post reported.   Continue reading here: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/073014