Secretary Lloyd Austin remained hospitalized at Walter Reed for a complication from a recent procedure nearly a week after first arriving in “severe pain,” according to Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder.
Austin, 70, had an undisclosed elective procedure on Dec. 22, and he returned from the hospital one day later. He then, on Jan. 1, “began experiencing severe pain and was transported to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center where he was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit,” Ryder said in a statement to the Washington Examiner on Sunday evening.
REPUBLICANS RAIL OVER DEFENSE SECRETARY LLOYD AUSTIN DISCLOSING HOSPITAL STAY
He is still in the hospital but is “recovering well and in good spirits” after re-assuming his duties as secretary of defense on Jan. 5, the same day the Pentagon disclosed that Austin had been hospitalized. The White House was reportedly in the dark on his hospitalization until last Thursday.
The delayed release of Austin’s medical situation to both the public and other parts of the Biden administration has prompted significant scrutiny from members of both political parties.
“While we wish Sec. Austin a speedy recovery, we are concerned with how the disclosure of the Secretary’s condition was handled. Several questions remain unanswered including what the medical procedure and resulting complications were, what the Secretary’s current health status is, how and when the delegation of the Secretary’s responsibilities were made, and the reason for the delay in notification to the President and Congress,” Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) and Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), chairman and ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, said in a statement.
Austin acknowledged on Saturday he “could have done a better job” about disclosing his absence.
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“I also understand the media concerns about transparency and I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better,” Austin said. “But this is important to say: this was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”
The current controversy comes as the U.S. desperately attempts to prevent Israel’s war from becoming a regional one. Last week, Israel was accused of carrying out a strike against a top Hamas leader in Lebanon, the U.S. military carried out a controversial strike in Baghdad, Iraq, and the Yemen-based Houthis continued their attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea.
