What was US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin thinking when, for almost a week, it occurred to him to tell anyone that he was admitted to intensive care in the heat of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza? The controversy over the medical situation of the Pentagon chief, who is recovering in a military hospital from complications of a surgical operation, does not subside as the days pass. Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump calls for his firing; The White House said this Monday categorically: It maintains its full confidence in the general.
Austin, who is second only to President Joe Biden in the U.S. military chain of command, entered the intensive care unit at Walter Reed Hospital on the northern outskirts of Washington on Jan. 1. For five days no one knew that the defense minister was in the hospital. Neither his deputy Kathleen Hicks, who traveled to Puerto Rico and had to take over her boss's duties there, nor the American president himself.
Finally, last Friday afternoon and just 24 hours after it briefed White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on the situation, the Pentagon issued a succinct statement. The four-star general remains in the hospital this Monday, although the Ministry of Defense assures that he recovered without problems and carried out his duties from his hospital room. Biden spoke with him on Saturday. However, according to the Pentagon's latest memo on Sunday evening, there is no expected date for the patient's discharge.
“There is no plan other than for Secretary Austin to continue in his job and continue with the leadership he has already demonstrated,” the National Security Council spokesman assured the press from the presidential plane on Air Force One. , John Kirby, who accompanied Biden on a visit to South Carolina this Monday. For her part, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre emphasized on the same flight that the president continued to have “full confidence” in his defense minister.
“Of course, as you would expect, we will look at the process and approach in this case and try to learn from this experience,” Kirby said. If the investigation into the incident determines that changes to the notification protocol are necessary, the White House will apply them. So far, the presidential office checks every morning where the holders of each portfolio are, but only in a “generic” way, according to the spokesman: it checks the city or place where they are, but not the exact location.
“The main issue at the moment is Secretary Austin’s health and ensuring he receives the care and support he needs to make a full recovery,” the spokesman said. “He has now taken over all his duties again. It already performs all the functions it normally does. The only difference is that he does it from the hospital,” he added.
Join EL PAÍS to follow all the news and read without restrictions.
Subscribe to
It has not yet been clarified what the medical problem was of the defense minister, an introverted man who, according to people close to him, hates revealing details of his private life.
The Pentagon has confirmed that Austin underwent surgery at the start of the Christmas holiday and was discharged a day later. But the complications that arose from this procedure forced him to be hospitalized. “As of Thursday afternoon, there was no notification or acknowledgment in the White House or the National Security Council,” Kirby admitted. “It is expected that the hierarchy chain will be notified if a government official is hospitalized. “That’s expected,” he concluded.
Austin's duties as Secretary of Defense require him to be available at all times to respond to the outbreak of a potential national security crisis. This is a particularly urgent need at a time when the United States faces attacks from groups sympathetic to Iran in the Middle East and fears the conflict between Israel and Hamas will spread to other parts of the region, while Russia continues its campaign Attacks increased in Ukraine. In a statement released Saturday, Austin took “full responsibility” for the lack of transparency and secrecy surrounding his medical situation.
However, it does not appear that the White House interpreted the communications blackout as intentional negligence, but rather as an oversight resulting from the general's discreet personality. Austin, the first black secretary of defense of the United States and a man of great physical presence – he is 193 centimeters tall – is a highly respected figure in the government. And Biden was distinguished throughout his political life by being very loyal to his team. This has been reinforced in a presidential term in which he has surrounded himself with people he trusts implicitly and who have known each other for decades.
“The President respects the fact that Secretary Austin has taken responsibility for the lack of transparency. “He also respects the great work he did as Secretary of Defense,” Kirby said this Monday.
Criticism and doubts
Although the White House is ready to turn the tide, the Republican opposition appears unwilling to give up on the controversy, even less so with a week left until the start of the primary process to determine a new candidate for the November presidential election in Iowa remains. . Some Democratic members of Congress also expressed doubts about the appropriateness of the Pentagon chief's behavior.
The favorite for the nomination, Donald Trump, assured on his social network Truth Social on Sunday evening that Austin should be fired for his “inappropriate professional behavior and dereliction of duty.” “He has been missing for a week and no one, not even his boss, the corrupt Joe Biden, had any idea where he was or might be,” he wrote.
The chairwoman of the Republican group in the House of Representatives and member of the Armed Services Committee in this body, Elise Stefanik, also called for the Pentagon chief to resign in a letter Message in Xformerly Twitter: “This disturbing lack of transparency demonstrates a huge error of judgment and a serious threat to national security.” Full accountability must be demanded, starting with the resignation and an investigation of Secretary Austin and those who lied on his behalf serious dereliction of duty by Congress.”
In a joint statement, bipartisan leaders of the House Armed Services Committee, Republican Mike Rogers and Democrat Adam Smith, wrote that “several questions remain to be answered” about the case, “including what the surgical operation consisted of and what.” The complications included the current health status of the Secretary, how and when the delegation of responsibilities occurred, and the reason for the delay in notifying Congress and the President.”
“Transparency is absolutely fundamental,” both lawmakers say. “Secretary Austin should provide this additional data regarding his health and the decision-making process over the past week as quickly as possible.”
Follow all international information on Facebook and Xor in our weekly newsletter.
Subscribe to continue reading
Read without limits
_