Accurateaimee,
Firstly, I am not involved with the Vets team and don't know their inner workings, so I am speaking specifically about the Palma team. It might be worth noting that the system of selection based on the "total package" of shooters as opposed to just straight scores was used on the 2015 cycle. This resulted in a gold medal for the Vets team, and the Palma team setting a new record score in the match only to take 2nd place to an insanely good Great Britain team. Not bad, certainly a much better performance than had been turned in for quite a few cycles.
I'm a nobody civilian from the middle of nowhere, and I qualified for the US National Team (the development program for the US Palma Team) at a tryout in 2013. I didn't know a single person involved with the team when I showed up to the tryout. My elevation scores were good enough to make that initial cut to get my foot in the door. I knew it was way too late to get onto the 2015 team (and I wouldn't have been ready anyways), so I decided right then and there that I wanted to be on the 2019 Palma team. Fast forward to today, and I am on the 2019 Palma team. I've been evaluated for the last 5 years. That's 5 years of the team looking at my scores, elevation plots, performance in team matches, general attitude, etc. I did not have any friends in high places. I worked my ass off, and so did the others on the team.
While scores at a single match or event are not the sole basis for team selection, don't think they aren't considered. That said, looking at the results of a match and saying "That shooter should/shouldn't be on the Palma team" is a mistake. Any scorecard is just a snapshot of a shooter, and great individual shooters aren't always great team shooters. The system of taking the top 20 individual shooters from the Palma match at Perry rarely resulted in great team performances. There are no bad shooters on the 2019 Palma team, and I am confident that none of them were selected because of who they know or where they live. Some are well known, while others are not, but every one of us earned our spots. If you have some evidence to suggest otherwise, I'd love to hear it.
Also, posting your real name would go a long way to giving you some credibility in this discussion.
Erik Rhode