U.S. defense secretary Austin remains hospitalized as lawmakers demand answers
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin remained hospitalized Sunday as he faced widening bipartisan criticism for failing to go public about complications from an elective medical procedure for days.
Austin – the U.S.’s top defense official at a time of surging global threats, a key cabinet member and a crucial figure in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – went into the hospital for an elective treatment on Jan. 1 and hasn’t been at the Pentagon since. He’s “still in the hospital,” recovering well and there’s no update on when he’ll be discharged, Defense Department spokesman Patrick Ryder said in a statement Sunday.
“It’s pretty shocking on this because when you’re the secretary of defense, you need to make everyone aware that you’re actually going to be out of pocket,” Senator James Lankford, a Republican from Oklahoma, said on Fox News Sunday.
The Pentagon announced Austin’s hospitalization at Walter Reed Medical Center on Friday, four days after he was admitted and without providing specifics on his ailment or the treatment he received.
President Joe Biden and Austin didn’t speak to each other for two days after the president was informed Thursday about Austin’s heath issues, but they talked Saturday evening, according to the people familiar with the matter. The president has full confidence in his defense secretary, a U.S. official said separately.
Austin’s absence has raised questions about who in the Biden administration knew what and when about the absence of the leader who oversees the largest military in the world.
In Friday’s announcement, the Pentagon said Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks was prepared to exercise the secretary’s powers at all times “if required.”
A senior U.S. official said there are standing protocols to ensure the White House can reach U.S. government officials, including deputies and other senior department leaders.
There’s no immediate word of any changes to the protocols after the incident with Austin, the official said.
Republican senators on Saturday called for “consequences” for Austin’s notification gap, accused the Pentagon of deliberately withholding information and demanded that the Biden administration give a full briefing to lawmakers on what happened.
Representative James Clyburn, a Democrat from South Carolina and Biden ally, defended Austin’s military record and his legal right to medical privacy but suggested the matter should have been handled differently.
“He does have a duty to keep the public informed,” Clyburn said Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union. “And I don’t know whether it was him or somebody inside of the military establishment that decided to do it this way.”
Biden was informed of Austin’s hospitalization on Thursday by his chief of staff, Jeff Zients, and his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, according to two people who asked not to be identified discussing internal communications. A spokesperson for the White House’s National Security Council declined to comment on Saturday.
NBC News reported Saturday that Austin, 70, spent four days in intensive care at Walter Reed Medical Center near Washington.
Austin responded later Saturday with an apology for failing to inform the public for days, while saying he’s on the mend and expects to return to the Pentagon “soon.” The statement didn’t address his communications with the White House.
Austin said “I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better.” He also emphasized that “this was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”
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(With assistance from Peter Martin and Ian Fisher.)