WASHINGTON – House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers has called on Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to come to Congress next month to explain his secret hospitalization earlier this month.
For three days, Austin kept secret his condition from complications from a prostatectomy from the Pentagon and White House, drawing criticism from Republicans and Democrats.
Mr. Rogers (R-Ala.) said in a letter Thursday that he spoke with Mr. Austin after the scandal broke and that the Pentagon chief “committed full transparency to questions regarding the secrecy of your recent hospitalization.” I did,” he said.
“While you answered some of my questions, a worrying number of questions were left unaddressed,” the lawmaker added. “I am particularly concerned by your refusal to answer whether you instructed your staff not to inform the President of the United States or anyone else about your hospitalization.”
“Unfortunately, this makes me think that information is being withheld from Congress,” he added.
The charges come after an audio recording of a 911 call requesting an ambulance to an Austin, Va., home on the night of Jan. 1 was released earlier this week through a Freedom of Information Act request. It became clear that he had intended to keep quiet about the health emergency.
“Can I ask you this? Isn't the ambulance coming with its lights and siren on?” the staff member first says to the dispatcher in the recording. Obtained by The Daily Beastadded, “Well, we're trying to stay a little low-key.”
It was so “subtle” that Austin didn't even tell his aide, Kathleen Hicks, about his hospitalization when he transferred secretarial authority from the hospital to her. Hicks, the White House, and the rest of the Pentagon only learned why she had done what she did on January 4, three days after she took over her duties. It was after that.
Mr. Austin returned to work virtually from Walter Reed on January 5, advising the president on important defense issues, including airstrikes against Houthi terrorists in Yemen, from his hospital bed. He will not be released until Monday and is currently working from his home until he is well enough to return to the Pentagon.
“These are extremely volatile times globally. Our country needs trusted leadership from this department,” Rogers wrote. “To maintain a force that is as responsive and lethal as possible, everyone in the national security community needs to be able to trust the responsiveness and transparency of the Secretary of Defense.”
“Unfortunately, you have not been able to demonstrate these qualities throughout this series of events,” he added.
Mr. Austin has long been a private man, but lawmakers say he waived any claims to confidentiality about his health when he accepted the cabinet position.
“Congress needs to understand what happened and who made the decision to prevent the release of ministers' whereabouts,” Rogers wrote to Austin. “Due to our reluctance to provide candid and complete answers, we must convene a full committee hearing on February 14, 2024.”
Despite the worrying lack of transparency, President Biden has so far vowed to keep Austin in his post as defense secretary.
It remains unclear whether Austin will comply with Rogers' request, as the letter is merely an “invitation” rather than a subpoena. Until then, Mr. Rogers called for answers to unanswered questions that have so far been ignored.
Among those questions are explanations of other times when Mr. Austin has delegated authority due to health issues, and a “timeline” for how long Mr. Hicks will have to take over Mr. Austin's responsibilities. These include whether Mr. Hicks knew something the president did not. Austin was in the hospital.
Rogers also asked Austin, 70, to rescind “all orders to inform or not inform others” about his hospitalization. A list of “all official actions taken or authorized” by him from the hospital. All communications with Pentagon and White House officials regarding his health and whereabouts.
“In the meantime, I look forward to prompt answers to all outstanding questions so that the committee can consider the necessary information for future hearings,” Rogers wrote. “We look forward to your utmost honesty and cooperation in this matter.
“Anything that doesn’t meet that is completely unacceptable.”
