Pentagon chief put on defensive about secret hospital stay
WASHINGTON — Under fire for his secret hospital stay last month, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told lawmakers Thursday that the Defense Department has made changes to improve the notification process if he must transfer decision-mak- ing authorities due to illness or lack of communications.
He said there were no gaps in control of the depart- ment or the nation’s secu- rity because “at all times, either I or the deputy sec- retary was in a position to conduct the duties of my office.”
Democrats and Repub- licans criticized his failure to quickly let President Joe Biden and other senior lead- ers know about his hospi- talization for complications from prostate cancer sur- gery.
’s totally unacceptable that it took three days to inform the president of the United States that the sec- retary of defense was in the hospital and not in control of the Pentagon,” said Rep. Mike Rogers, chair- man of the House Armed Services Committee, add- ing that wars were raging in Ukraine and Israel at the time. “The chain of com- mand doesn’t work when the commander in chief doesn’t know who to call.”
Rogers, R-Ala., and others said someone needs to be held accountable.
The incident led to con- cerns about lapses in the command and control of the armed forces, includ- ing the country’s nuclear arsenal.
The Pentagon has said Austin’s staff notified Dep- uty Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks when Austin went into intensive care in early January. But that only raised questions about why Austin was didn’t do that himself and whether that suggested there was a gap in control.
Austin said at the committee hearing that “at no time during my treatment or recovery were there any gaps in authorities.” He offered a mea culpa that mirrored remarks early this month at a news briefing, saying he takes full responsibility for the communications failures and that he has apologized to Biden.
Acknowledging the breakdown in communications, he added, “I should have promptly informed the president, my team, Congress, and the American people about my cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment. Again: We did not handle this right. And I did not handle it right.”
Austin was diagnosed wi h prostate cancer in early December and went to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for surgery on Dec. 22. On Jan. 1, he was taken back to Walter Reed by ambulance after experiencing significant pain, and was moved to the intensive care unit the next day.