The White House had to reportedly advise the Pentagon to publicly announce Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been hospitalized after the branch failed to immediately notify the president and his staff of his stay in Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C., two senior administration officials told Politico.
The Pentagon failed to notify the White House and President Joe Biden several days after Austin had been rushed to Walter Reed Hospital on Jan. 1 due to a medical emergency. The White House then reportedly learned that the Pentagon had no disclosure plan in place regarding Austin’s hospitalization and had to encourage senior leaders at the Pentagon to notify the public, two senior administration officials told Politico.
The White House’s directive, Politico reported, is what caused the Pentagon to release information on Austin’s hospitalization on Friday evening, and why they reportedly gave congressional lawmakers a 15-minute notice before they broke the news.
Both Republicans and Democrats have criticized the apparent communication breakdown between the Pentagon and the White House. Despite the backlash, Biden is not planning to fire Austin, a White House official told the Daily Caller. Kirby reaffirmed this stance in a press gaggle on Monday.
“President Biden appreciates Secretary Austin taking ownership and pledging to improve transparency going forward,” the White House official previously told the Daily Caller. “He continues to have full trust and confidence in the Secretary.”
Kirby says there are lots of lessons to take from the communication breakdown between the WH and the Pentagon over Sec. Austin — such as early screening for prostate cancer. @DailyCaller
— Reagan Reese (@reaganreese_) January 9, 2024
Until Tuesday, Austin’s reason for hospitalization had not been revealed by either the Department of Defense (DOD) or the White House. The Pentagon then revealed Tuesday that Austin had a procedure Dec. 22 to treat prostate cancer and returned to the hospital on Jan. 1 due to pain resulting from a urinary tract infection. Despite talking to Austin on Saturday, Biden did not learn until Tuesday what condition had Austin hospitalized.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks on the government response and recovery efforts on the wildfires on Maui, Hawaii and the ongoing response from the federal government to Hurricane Idalia as Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (L) and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas (R) listen at the Roosevelt Room of the White House on August 30, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
The White House also didn’t know why Austin underwent a procedure on Dec. 22, Kirby said during the briefing.
Austin did not tell the White House of his Dec. 22 elective surgery, either, CNN reported.
Austin released a statement on Saturday following the backlash, taking responsibility for the communication break down. (RELATED: ‘Dereliction Of Duty’: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin Draws Fire Over Handling Of Undisclosed Medical Condition)
“I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better,” Austin said in the statement Saturday. “But this is important to say: this was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”