( CNN ) -- General Eric Shinseki , one of the finest soldiers of his generation , performed a final act of service for his country when he fell on his sword . It was a sad moment but , as a life-long patriot , he knew he had to resign as secretary of Veterans Affairs . As good an officer as he was , he could no longer expect to lead his huge department , a bureaucracy second in size only to Defense and representing nearly 15 % of the entire federal civilian work force . Evidence has been piling up that he and his top lieutenants knew shockingly little about misdeeds within the department , despite years of negative reports . And he was rapidly losing the confidence of Congress , the public and most importantly , veterans . Now , attention can rightly expand from investigations of the past -- though they must go on -- to how to fix the future . A White House that has hardly covered itself with glory needs to get on top of the problem and stay aggressively there . The place to start is to appoint a world-class leader to run the place and recruit a squad of young , talented veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan as a personal support team . Unfortunately , the best person in the country to run the VA is the least available : Robert Gates . No one knows more or as has been more effective in running large , massive public institutions than Gates . He was not only superb at running the CIA but was then successful in running Texas A & M ( the seventh-largest university in the country ) and went on to serve with great distinction as secretary of defense , winding down two wars for Presidents Bush and Obama . Borger : Obama defeated by bureaucracy ? But Gates is now happy in retirement in Washington state , thousands of miles away from Washington , D.C . If you have seen him on a book tour , you may have noticed the neck brace he had to wear for a few months . He jokes that one morning over breakfast he told his wife he was thinking of returning to D.C. and the next thing he knew , he woke up in the hospital with a broken neck . The point is that the VA desperately needs a leader who can overhaul an agency notoriously resistant to change , someone who knows a lot about military culture . After Gates , the next best choice is likely to be his last deputy at DOD , Ashton Carter . ( Disclosure : Carter is a friend and esteemed colleague from the Kennedy School . ) Carter won very high marks among civilians and military as deputy secretary , the person who `` runs the building . '' The White House may also find a retired four-star general who would be a good fit ; retired Gen. John Allen , whom the President tapped to help out with negotiations in the Middle East , quickly comes to mind . But the roster of people who would be strong choices is actually quite limited , so the search must be relentlessly tough-minded . Even so , this is not a one-person job . A new secretary will need reinforcements . There are none better than some of the veterans who have come back from Iraq and Afghanistan , peeled off their uniforms , and volunteered to continue their service as civilians -- rightful heirs of the World War II generation . A smart White House would recruit some of the best among them and put them to work fixing the VA in some imaginative way -- possibly in full-time stints , possibly in consulting teams . An obvious candidate as leader : Lt. Cmdr . Eric Greitens , a Rhodes Scholar , Navy SEAL , veteran of several tours , best-selling author , founder of the veterans group , The Mission Continues ( I serve on its board ) . In recent years , I have had the privilege of teaching a number of veterans who have pursued graduate degrees at Harvard . They are extraordinarily talented and ready to help . Start with Maura Sullivan , for example : Northwestern undergrad , Marine officer in Iraq , graduate of the Harvard Business School and Kennedy School , now rising in leadership ranks at PepsiCo and serving on a federal veterans advisory board . Top talent is ready and willing . Why not ask them for help ? Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have had too little voice in the VA . It 's time to call on the best to serve their country again .
David Gergen : An admirable Shinseki performed selfless act of service be resigning VA post . VA needs world-class leader with support team of ex-servicemen and women , he says . Gergen : It 's a narrow field of qualified . Ashton Carter . He is the only one who has been in combat. Gergen Most crucial is recruiting top-flight veterans who can help imaginatively pull VA into shape .