Earlier throughout the day there were significant rumors that Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin has been in the hospital for days, and no one knew it… surprisingly even at the White House, apparently—and at a moment the US is embroiled in running conflicts and proxy wars from Ukraine to the Middle East.
This is a worrisome development which has huge implications for the Biden administration and White House competency and issues of transparency. Not only has Austin’s hospitalization now been confirmed, but CNN is reporting late Saturday that President Biden was in the dark almost the whole time:
President Joe Biden was not aware for days that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was hospitalized, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan ultimately informed Biden late Thursday afternoon, soon after Sullivan himself learned that Austin had been hospitalized, that source said. Austin was admitted to the hospital on New Year’s Day due to complications from an elective surgery.
The Pentagon announced the hospitalization Friday. Austin issued his first statement Saturday, five days after being admitted to the hospital, saying he could have done a “better job” of notifying the public.
All of this was ultimately confirmed by a statement from the hospitalized Secretary of Defense himself, who said in the early evening Saturday, “I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better.”
Austin continued regarding this growing scandal over transparency: “But this is important to say: this was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure,” the statement continued.
The Defense Secretary was at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and now says he’s “on the mend”.
He was hospitalized and thus out of commission… as the head of the Pentagon… for nearly four days.
NEWS
CNN has now confirmed that President Biden was not aware that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was hospitalized and in intensive care for nearly four days.
Biden only found out when National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan informed him Thursday afternoon shortly after… pic.twitter.com/S1lJPFYsR0
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) January 7, 2024
CNN underscores, “Senior administration officials said they were shocked to learn of Austin’s hospitalization and the delay in informing the White House.”
The initial procedure which led to complications has been deemed minor, but the situation worsened into a serious medical event based on the undisclosed complication.
This scandal may have Constitutional implications, given the White House-appointed civilian head of the military was persona non grata and the Commander-in-Chief didn’t so much as know about it…
An entire industry of reporters investigating Chris Rufo’s college degree but none of them can figure out why the Secretary of Defense was missing in action for four days while the Biden Administration covered it up.
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) January 7, 2024
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