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U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin testified on February 29 at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., at a hearing of the House Armed Services Committee investigating the circumstances surrounding his failure to report his absence during a recent hospitalization.
CNN
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Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at Thursday's hearing focused on the several-day delay in notifying both lawmakers and President Joe Biden of his whereabouts after he was hospitalized following treatment for prostate cancer, citing a delay from members of Congress about his whereabouts. facing the question.
Austin is still recovering from complications after prostate cancer surgery in December and is testifying before the House Armed Services Committee. The hearing was requested by Republican Chairman Mike Rogers, who said in January that a full committee hearing was needed because of Austin's “reluctance to give candid and complete answers” about his hospitalization. Ta.
“Congress needs to understand what happened and who made the decisions to prevent the disclosure of the whereabouts of ministers,” Rogers said in a Jan. 18 letter to Austin.
In his opening remarks Thursday, Mr. Rogers said it was “totally unacceptable” that the president did not know Mr. Austin's whereabouts.
“Wars were raging in Ukraine and Israel, our ships were under fire in the Red Sea, and our bases were preparing for attacks in Syria and Iraq,” Roger said. “However, the commander-in-chief was not aware that the secretary of defense was off duty.”
Austin acknowledged Thursday that there was a “breakdown of notification,” but said there was “no intention whatsoever to withhold my hospitalization from the White House or anyone else.”
“[B]”Oh, in December, I should have immediately informed the president, my team, Congress, and the American people about my cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment,” Austin said. “Again, we didn't handle this right. And I didn't handle this right…full responsibility is mine.”
Austin's Jan. 1 hospitalization prompted a flurry of questions and reviews of the Pentagon's processes, including the one underway by the Pentagon's inspector general. Mr. Austin was taken to the hospital by ambulance on January 1st and was rushed to the emergency room on January 2nd, but it was not until his aide Kathleen Hicks and the White House were informed that he was hospitalized. It was January 4th. Hicks was transferred some of his powers on January 2nd for reasons unknown, which the Pentagon says is not unusual.
The next day, January 5th, Congress and the public were informed.
Austin, an intensely private person, has since stated that he “never directed anyone to keep my January hospitalization from the White House,” and that the news of his cancer was “shocking.” ” he said.
“Frankly, my first instinct was that I wanted to keep it private. I don't think it's news that I'm a pretty private person, but I don't want to go out on a limb with my affairs. I never like to burden others,” Austin said at a Pentagon press conference earlier this month. “That's not how I operate. But this experience taught me that taking this kind of job means losing some of the privacy that most of us expect. I learned: Americans have a right to know whether their leaders are facing health problems that could affect their ability to perform their jobs, even temporarily.”
However, in a joint statement in January, Mr. Rogers and executive member Adam Smith said they were “concerned about how the disclosure of the Secretary's condition will be handled.”
“Transparency is extremely important,” the Jan. 7 statement said. “Sec. Austin must provide additional details regarding his health and the decision-making process that has occurred over the past week as soon as possible.”
Thursday's hearing came days after the Pentagon released the results of an internal investigation into the situation that ultimately found there was no attempt to “obscure” Austin's status.
The review was conducted by the director of the Office of Management, who Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said is a career bureaucrat. It made several recommendations on how Mr. Austin could improve communication and processes in future transfers of authority to his lieutenants and in notifying Congress, the White House, and other relevant officials.
However, the review said Austin's staff was “hesitant to steal or share information they did know” due to privacy concerns. Mr. Austin has previously rejected the idea that he has “created a culture of secrecy,” and Mr. Ryder on Monday said that “dedicated public servants…do what they think is right.” defended its employees.
Austin pointed to the review's recommendations Thursday, saying “new procedures” will “prevent any failure to notify” in the future.
“I am confident that the same problem will not occur in the future,” he said.
In a preview of Thursday's hearing, Congressman Rogers harshly criticized the Pentagon review in a statement Monday, saying it “holds no one accountable.”
“This is why we are conducting our own investigation,” Rogers said. Statement regarding X. “I will seek answers at a hearing with Commissioner Austin on Thursday.”