According to a national security briefing, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's quiet hospitalization, which the White House was not informed of for days, is unprecedented and threatens the United States' political and military standing on the world stage. It is said that it weakened the.
“I can't think of any historical precedent for something like this, and we've been around for a while, so we've never seen anything like this happen before,” said Robert Greenway, director of the Allison Center at the Heritage Foundation. I honestly don't know if it was true or not.” a national security official told Fox News Digital in a phone interview Monday. He said the incident further eroded trust in the Biden administration.
Austin has faced fierce backlash this week from conservative lawmakers, leaders and experts over his quiet hospitalization, with former President Donald Trump pushing for his removal from office.
President Trump wrote in Truth Social Sunday that Austin “must be terminated immediately for his unprofessional conduct and dereliction of duty.”
White House responds to Republican calls for Secretary Austin to resign after being hospitalized with mysterious illness
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin participates in a meeting with Italian Defense Minister Guido Crossetto at the Pentagon on June 23, 2023. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
“He has been missing for a week and no one, including his boss, Crooked Joe Biden, had a clue where he was or might be,” he continued. Ta.
President Trump said, “His performance was poor and he should have been fired along with 'General' Mark Milley. For many reasons, but especially his disastrous surrender in Afghanistan, which is probably the most embarrassing in our nation's history.” It was a moment,” he added.
Defense Secretary Austin resumes duty after being kept in the dark from public appearances and spending several days in intensive care
Austin, 70, underwent an elective medical procedure at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Dec. 22 and experienced “severe pain” a few days later while at home, Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said. told Fox News on Sunday. He was taken to the hospital again on January 1st and was placed in the intensive care unit.
Details revealing what election procedures were carried out have not been made public. Austin resumed his duties and was transferred from the ICU, but remained at Walter Reed.
The media was informed of Austin's hospital treatment on Friday, and soon after President Biden, the National Security Council, and top Pentagon officials, including Austin's aide Kathleen Hicks, said they had remained silent for several days about the hospitalization. The reports continued. Ryder told the media on Monday that Chief of Staff Austin had the flu and it took so long to report his hospitalization to the White House and National Security Council.
The entrance to Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, November 19, 2021. (Olivier Drierly/AFP via Getty Images)
Greenway said he could think of no other time in U.S. history where a secretary of defense was hospitalized for several days without the commander-in-chief's knowledge, and the incident weakened the United States' international standing. did.
Pentagon deputy commander announces Austin hospitalized two days after taking over part of mission
“Putin, Xi, Khamenei in Tehran, Hezbollah, all of our adversaries are now looking at this situation with the same disbelief that we are, and they are already aware of their perceived weakness against the United States. “I think they're deciding that they have an opportunity because of the fact that some… lashing out. I think this increases the potential for mischief internationally. There is no need for the U.S. to physically take action.” Because they see an administration that is unprepared and unable to decide who is in charge as unprepared to take action,” Greenway said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. (Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images | Contributor/Getty Images | Scott Peterson/Getty Images)
“Not only was this done at a time when we were being threatened across multiple theaters, but…the reason we are in this situation is because we have the wrong policies, people, and practices. You could argue that it's because of this. This would reflect that. So I don't think this is a result of what's going on in the world. Maybe it's because of who's in charge. “I think the world is the way it is because it's not clear,” Greenway added.
Defense Secretary Austin has no plans to resign, the Pentagon says
National security experts compared the situation to criticism of Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) last February. He said it was an “illegal” policy by the Pentagon to pay military personnel to travel in pursuit of the Pentagon's “illegal” policy. abortion. Greenway said he hopes those who criticized Tuberville should be the first to criticize Austin.
“Everyone expressed considerable sadness about Sen. Tuberville's withholding of military promotions, saying, 'This has caused great disruption to the military.'” “I think we should blame the administration, the Department of Defense, because I don't see how firing the Secretary of Defense for a week could further undermine military readiness,” he argued. .
President Biden speaks at a meeting of the White House Competition Council on September 26, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
A White House official told Fox News Digital on Monday that there are no plans to replace Mr. Austin and that Mr. Biden “continues to have full confidence in Mr. Austin.”
Defense Secretary Austin hospitalized due to surgical complications
This is not the first time Austin has been urged to resign since he was confirmed as defense secretary on January 22, 2021. Later that year, not only Austin but the entire Biden administration faced intense criticism over the U.S. withdrawal. Members of Congress and veterans from Afghanistan are demanding Austin's resignation.
The chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan killed 13 U.S. military personnel guarding Kabul airport during the operation, while leaving hundreds of Americans and tens of thousands of Afghan allies stranded in the Taliban-controlled country. Ta. Critics such as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said the withdrawal paved the way for adversaries such as Russia to invade Ukraine in a war that has lasted nearly two years.
Greenway, who previously served as senior director of the National Security Council's Directorate for Middle Eastern and North African Affairs, said the White House's commitment to Austin likely boiled down to “real issues,” Fox News Digital told.
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“As a practical matter, they probably won't be able to confirm anyone else… They probably don't have a suitable replacement. They haven't gotten a policy director yet, and it's unlikely they'll get one.” “I think it's the Senate confirmation process,” he said.
