Some Pentagon officials feel that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was “reckless” in keeping his hospitalization and cancer diagnosis a secret from President Biden and his subordinates.
“He made a deliberate decision not to share at least some very important things with the president. It was reckless and irresponsible,” one official said on condition of anonymity. told Politico In an article published Tuesday. “I don't want to take away the human element from his diagnosis. … But his judgment should be questioned on this.”
The White House had been “kept in the dark” about Austin's hospitalization, but the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff first learned of the news on January 2, 48 hours later. Mr. Austin, 70, was admitted to Walter Reed Hospital's intensive care unit. “He was admitted to the National Military Medical Center on January 1 due to severe pain due to complications following a recent elective medical procedure,” Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said last week.
Media, Democrats, Biden officials accuse Pentagon of cover-up on Austin's ICU stay: 'Heads need to turn'
Pentagon officials told Politico that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was “reckless” in keeping his hospitalization and cancer diagnosis a secret from President Joe Biden and his subordinates. (Bloomberg via Getty Images/AP Photo)
It was later revealed that Austin had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and had undergone a prostatectomy late last month. He was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on December 22, 2023, and underwent a minimally invasive surgical procedure called prostatectomy to treat and cure prostate cancer.
Some Pentagon officials told Politico they couldn't believe that Austin, 70, intentionally kept his diagnosis a secret from the president, and another said the incident was a result of “no one in the office.” It was a failure because there wasn't one.”
Another former Pentagon official disputed that, saying his chief of staff, Kelly Magsamen, was known to be in contact “at all times.”
“Kerry is a force to be reckoned with,” the first defense official said. “I highly doubt that having the flu had any effect on her unless she lost her consciousness.”
Defense Secretary Austin fired by Washington Post for keeping US hospitalizations 'in the dark'
A third defense official said that although Austin is known as a quiet person, “[h]Our desire for privacy does not outweigh our obligations to the President, the Department, and the Nation. ” (Thomas Niedermüller/Getty Images)
A senior Biden administration official said the hospital scandal “shows that Lloyd Austin is being treated unfairly by a political staff that caters to his worst impulses regarding disclosure and shuts out people outside of his loyal coterie.” “I'm doing it,” he said. He criticizes them so much that he forgets that they are actually working for the president in the administration. ”
A third defense official said that although Austin is known as a quiet person, “[h]Our desire for privacy does not outweigh our obligations to the President, the Department, and the Nation. ”
The official added: “This decision jeopardized national security and left senior decision-makers in the dark, including White House officials and the president, as well as his own subordinate leaders. It was also unfair to the people who trusted him.” . ”
Click to get the FOX News app
The Department of Defense did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
FOX News' Luis Casiano, Bradford Betts and Houston Keene contributed to this report.
