Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin made a public statement on Saturday night that he could have done a better job informing the public about a recent medical procedure that required his hospitalization.
“I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better,” he said in a statement addressing media concerns over the lack of transparency.
“This was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure,” the 70-year-old added.
The statement follows pressure to address a Politico report citing two anonymous senior administration officials that there had been a three-day delay in notifying the White House of the Pentagon chief’s days-long hospitalization.
“Secretary Austin must address promptly the troubling report that the Department of Defense didn’t immediately notify President Biden or the National Security Council that he was hospitalized and unable to perform his duties,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said in a statement.
“The Secretary of Defense is the key link in the chain of command between the president and the uniformed military, including the nuclear chain of command, when the weightiest of decisions must be made in minutes. If this report is true, there must be consequences for this shocking breakdown.”
Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder confirmed on Jan. 5 that on the evening of Jan. 1, Mr. Austin “was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for complications following a recent elective medical procedure.”
Mr. Ryder added that Mr. Austin was expected to resume his duties on Jan. 5.
“He is recovering well and is expecting to resume his full duties today. At all times, the Deputy Secretary of Defense [Kathleen Hicks] was prepared to act for and exercise the powers of the Secretary, if required,” the spokesman said.
Leaving evening mass at St. Joseph on the Brandywine in Delaware on Saturday night, President Joe Biden declined to answer questions from a reporter about Mr. Austin’s hospitalization and recovery.
“I am very glad to be on the mend and look forward to returning to the Pentagon soon.”
Mr. Austin did not disclose any further details about his procedure. Mr. Ryder, when asked about the delay in notifying the White House, told NBC News, “This has been an evolving situation in which we had to consider a number of factors.” He also made mention of Mr. Austin’s personal privacy.
The Pentagon Press Association said in a letter to the heads of the Pentagon’s press office dated Jan. 5 that the delay in reporting was “an outrage.”
“The public has a right to know when U.S. cabinet members are hospitalized, under anesthesia or when duties are delegated as the result of any medical procedure,” its board of directors said. “That has been the practice even up to the president’s level. As the nation’s top defense leader, Secretary Austin has no claim to privacy in this situation.”
His hospitalization comes at a time of heightened tensions for U.S. personnel—particularly in the Red Sea—amid crises in the Middle East, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and the Chinese Communist Party’s aggression in the South China Sea.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
