Vice President Dick Cheney on Dec. 20 administered the oath of office for the new head of Veterans Affairs, James Peake, a combat veteran of the Vietnam War and former Army Surgeon General. President Bush stood at his side during the ceremony. Peake, who graduated from West Point in 1966 and retired from the Army in 2004 as a lieutenant general, is a thoracic surgeon.
The Air Force has finished modifying and testing the new VC-25B Bridge aircraft that will serve as a temporary Air Force One, the service announced May 1. All that’s left now is to finish painting the jet before it starts flying this summer.