Military officials who had to reveal their coronavirus vaccination status to their commanders to keep their jobs hid the fact that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was hospitalized from their superiors, colleagues and the American public for nearly a week. I feel there is a double standard in what I did. face no consequences.
Austin reiterated at Thursday’s press conference that he did not tell his commanders or colleagues because he wanted to protect his privacy.
“I was undergoing treatment for prostate cancer. This news shocked me, but I also know it has shocked many others, especially the black community. It was such a shock. Frankly, my first instinct was to keep this private. I don’t think it’s news that I’m a pretty private person,” he said. and say, “But I learned from this experience: Taking this kind of job means losing some of the privacy that most of us expect.”
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U.S. Department of Defense, via Storyful
He again addressed his privacy, saying, “Cancer is a very private disease,” and asserting that race was a factor.
“But within the black community, it’s even more of a secret that people want to keep secret,” he says.
But those who have been forced to share their vaccination status or medical history, or who have been punished or expelled from the military, face a double standard.
In August 2021, Austin ordered all members of the military and reserves to get vaccinated or be discharged. People who didn’t want to get vaccinated for religious reasons not only had to defend those beliefs, they had to have a pastor attest to those beliefs. Similarly, those who did not want to take it for medical or other reasons had to explain why. Moreover, the majority of those requests were denied.
Additionally, if soldiers do not want to be vaccinated, they are often separated from other service members or forced to wear masks, which is not only humiliating in public, but also shows that their vaccination status is different from other service members. Some say that their privacy has been violated by being exposed.
More than 8,000 service members were expelled from the military for refusing to comply with Austin’s orders or having their requests denied.
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Air Force Intelligence Officer Jordan Carr was one of them.
She told Breitbart News that she does, in fact, support Austin’s right to medical privacy, but that military leaders should “ensure the same reprieve for service members whose rights were violated under Austin’s leadership.” I wanted it to be given to me,” he said.
Kerr added that those defending Austin’s medical privacy rights remained silent while service members were being “abused, coerced, threatened and ultimately discharged.”
He added, “As a public servant directly in line with the president’s successor, the American people have a right to know the seriousness of his diagnosis.”
Arizona House of Representatives candidate Nick Kupper, who recently retired from the Air Force after a battle with duty, posted on X:
I wish military personnel had enjoyed the same lack of oversight when choosing not to conduct the unauthorized experimental filming that Secretary Austin illegally forced upon us.
I wish military personnel had enjoyed the same lack of oversight when choosing not to conduct the unauthorized experimental filming that Secretary Austin illegally forced upon us.
But I dream. https://t.co/hketj5hmvA
— Nick Kupper (@kupper4arizona) January 8, 2024
John Frankman, a Green Beret whose career was also ended by Austin’s vaccination order, said Austin’s failure to notify the commander-in-chief was “inexcusable” and that “a low-ranking individual is inactive. “This is the basis for being considered a member of the public,” he said.
Frankman told Breitbart News: “Lloyd Austin’s recent disappearance is just one of many disastrous failures during his time as Secretary of Defense, and our elected leaders We must hold them accountable.”
Beyond the issue of vaccine mandates, some have pointed to the double standards being applied to Austin and the military’s rank-and-file ranks.
Matthew Cothron, a Marine Corps veteran and host of the podcast Barstool Sports, said: I have written A January 8th blog post reads:
My friends, if any other leader did that, they would pay a hell of a price. If a company commander, battalion commander, brigade commander, regiment commander, or division commander fails to disclose his hospitalization, he will be summarily dismissed as a loss of faith and confidence.
Tom Logan, columnist washington examiner, I have written:
Additionally, what message does Austin’s choice send to his subordinates within the Pentagon’s vast organization? Hide the truth? Do you accept extreme risks in terms of being unprepared for contingencies? Do you keep the commander and his men alike in the dark?
Austin has to go.
On Thursday, NBC News correspondent Peter Alexander told Austin, “Anyone in the military would have faced discipline or even termination,” adding, “Why doesn’t the same standard apply to you? Is that so?” he asked.
Austin didn’t answer his question, instead saying, And as I said, I take full responsibility for the actions of the department. ”
There is little indication that Austin will take immediate responsibility.
The Pentagon is investigating what happened, but has not committed to disclosing everything publicly. The Pentagon’s inspector general is also investigating what happened, but a final report could be months or years away.
Austin said Biden responded with “courtesy and warmth” and told him he had “full confidence.”
Mr. Austin also did not commit to attending a hearing requested by House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) and said he would “stay in touch with Chairman Rogers’ office as the situation develops.” I’ll keep taking it,” he said.
But Frankman and others argue that it would be ironic if Austin were ultimately held responsible for the clearance failure compared to Austin’s other failures as secretary of defense.
“I urge members of Congress to hold him accountable for this, but also to hold him accountable for his other policies and failures that had more strategic implications and undermined the readiness of our military,” Frankman said. I would encourage them not to lose sight of it.”
Joe Kent, a retired Army Special Forces Chief Warrant Officer and candidate for Washington’s 3rd Congressional District, posted on X:
Given Austin’s track record as SECDEF (African Union with conscription, mandatory vaccinations, witch-hunting extremists) and General (Syrian moderate rebels), he will ultimately be held accountable for taking unauthorized leave. If so, he would have gotten away easily.
Given Austin’s track record as SECDEF (African Union with conscripts, vaccination missions, extremist witch-hunts) and General (Syrian moderate rebels), taking unauthorized leave may ultimately be the culprit. If you ask me, he’ll have it easy.
Just cut his salary to zero and impeach him. pic.twitter.com/i070fbL1Kp
— Joe Kent of WA-3 (@joekent16jan19) January 8, 2024
“Just cut his salary to zero and impeach him,” Kent added.
Mr. Austin also did not answer key questions at Thursday’s press conference. For example, why his staff didn’t notify Biden or the White House on his behalf, or why his assistant told an ambulance dispatcher to be cautious when approaching his home. . All we can do is wait for the results of the Department of Defense review.
“At this point, we don’t know what exactly happened. But I think the details will emerge as the review takes place,” he said.
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