MORE EMPLOYEES THAN SOLDIERS: A SYSTEM FEEDING ITSELF
The Department of Veterans Affairs employs more people than the active-duty Army. Why?
It’s not about serving veterans. It’s not about military strength. It’s about a system designed to sustain itself—layer upon layer of administration, bureaucracy, and sprawling management. It’s about numbers that look good on paper, budgets that keep growing, offices that keep expanding.
In a machine that values self-preservation above efficiency, the VA’s size isn’t surprising. It’s inevitable.














