*From:* "Johnson, Jenna" <xxx@washpost.com> *Date:* August 12, 2017 at 2:40:19 PM EDT
*Subject:* *Pool Report No. 2*

The press pool has arrived at the clubhouse at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, NJ. We are holding in a lavish ballroom that has been converted into a bill-signing room equipped with a lectern and small desk, both featuring the presidential seal, and a line of four American flags. Off to the side is a line of gold banquet chairs. Reporters will be kept at a short distance with velvet ropes.
The event is slated to start at 3pm.
The president is expected to sign the Veterans Affairs Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017, which provides funding to extend a program that allows veterans to seek care at private medical facilities instead of just at the VA. More info from the WH is below.
It's an overcast day in Bedminster and it looks like it could rain at any moment, although weather reports promise we will be fine until this evening. It's humid and mid-70s and there are a few golf carts and golfers out on the course. As the pool vans arrived this afternoon, a woman at the gate questioned the drivers more than usual, saying: "We've had a lot of people trying to sneak in."

*Speakers:*

President Donald J. Trump

Secretary DavidShulkin, Department of Veterans Affairs

*External Participants:*

Verna Jones, Executive Director, American Legion

Mark Lucas, Executive Director, Concerned Veterans for America

Robert Bob Carey, GOP Vets

Michael Little, Director of Legislative Affairs and Government Relations, Association of the United States Navy

Matt Shuman-Timm, Director, Legislative Division, American Legion

Daniel Caldwell, Director of Policy, Concerned Veterans for America

Charles Robbins, Department of New Jersey Officer, American Legion

*_On Background from a White House Spokesperson_*

Today, President Donald J. Trump will sign the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act, an important step in fulfilling the Presidents promise to ensure our veterans receive the care they deserve. While it expands the VAs direct-hiring authority and authorizes 28 medical facility leases, it most importantly provides an additional $2.1 billion for the Veterans Choice Fund to continue the program into FY 2018. The President and Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. DavidShulkinare committed to modernizing and transforming the VA, and have taken unprecedented steps to ensure our veterans are a priority

Sent from my iPhone


Public Pool is an automated feed of White House press pool reports. For live updates, follow @WHPublicPool on Twitter.