President Joe Biden is standing by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin following a prolonged hospitalization of which the White House was not properly notified.
The Pentagon leader, who is sixth in the line of succession to the presidency and one of the most private members of Biden’s Cabinet, was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center last week for “complications following a recent elective medical procedure.” However, Biden and White House officials had not been made aware of the specific developments until Thursday, days after Austin had been admitted.
A White House official declined to comment on the exact nature of Austin’s medical procedure, nor the delay in notifying the White House of the subsequent hospitalization, but told the Washington Examiner that the president remains confident in Austin’s ability to lead the Defense Department.
Biden and Austin spoke Friday evening, and the president was “looking forward to him being back at the Pentagon,” according to White House officials.
Austin underwent elective surgery on Dec. 22 before being discharged, according to the Pentagon. He was admitted to Walter Reed on Jan. 1 after he began experiencing severe pain. The White House was not made aware of his hospitalization until Jan. 4, and he remained at Walter Reed through the weekend.
“I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better,” Austin said in a statement on Saturday. “This was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”
The Pentagon has not confirmed the details of Austin’s initial procedure, nor who was responsible for the decision not to notify the White House immediately of the surgery and Austin’s worsening condition.
Furthermore, Austin’s hospitalization comes as Biden continues to grapple with the realities of the wars in Ukraine and Israel. The administration is struggling to get Republicans on board with authorizing new foreign aid to Ukraine.
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Republican lawmakers and even some supporters of Biden heartily criticized the administration over the strange series of events. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) called the lack of disclosure “unacceptable” and is pushing the Pentagon to brief Capitol Hill offices on specific details regarding Austin’s hospitalization.
“Heads have to roll,” Brett Bruen, an Obama administration communications official, told Politico over the weekend. “This is not a minor miscommunication. It’s about the confidence that our national security structure has in its leadership and that the leadership is acting in a transparent way.”