NEDRA PICKLER
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — As President Barack Obama considers the fate of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, a look at how the president has responded when other officials in his administration have faced calls for their resignations:
KATHLEEN SEBELIUS — Obama stood by his health and human services secretary as the much-anticipated insurance marketplace established by his signature health care law failed spectacularly in its launch. Sebelius was kept on to oversee repairs before Obama accepted her resignation months later.
ERIC HOLDER — The attorney general has endured despite multiple calls for his resignation over a botched gun-trafficking operation and surveillance of reporters. Obama has said he has “complete confidence” in Holder and hopes he’ll continue leading the Justice Department.
SHIRLEY SHERROD — The firing of the Agriculture Department official may help explain why Obama hasn’t been quick to let anyone go at the first blush of controversy. Sherrod lost her job after a conservative website published a video clip of racial comments she made at an NAACP gathering. But when it became clear she had been advocating racial reconciliation, not racism, Obama asked her to come back to work. She declined.
STEVEN MILLER and LOIS LERNER — Lawmakers called for two heads to roll amid accusations that the IRS mistreated political groups. Obama replaced acting chief Miller within days of a report showing the misbegotten actions of lower-level employees. Lerner, who headed the tax-exempt division, refused to resign and was placed on paid leave before retiring months later as a possible firing loomed.
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