Pentagon Inspector General Says Defense Secretary Austin ‘Unnecessarily’ Increased Risks to National Security With Secret Hospital Stays

Defense Secretary Austin “unnecessarily” put America’s national security at risk when he made trips to the hospital for cancer treatment that were kept secret from the White House and other high-level staffers, a new report from the Pentagon’s inspector general, Robert Storch, says.Mr. Storch said the “ability for the DoD and the government to operate seamlessly and the continuity of leadership under any and all circumstances are fundamental to our national security.” While the report found no “adverse consequences to DoD operations arising from how the hospitalizations we reviewed were handled,” it did not let Mr. Austin off the hook. “The risks to our national defense, including the command and control of the DoD’s critical national security operations, were increased unnecessarily,” Mr. Storch said.Mr. Austin was hospitalized in late December 2023 for a “planned prostatectomy to address prostate cancer.” While the surgery was carried out under general anesthesia, he transferred his authority to the deputy secretary, but the inspector general’s report says he “did not inform her of the reason for the transfer.”On January 1, 2024, the defense secretary was “unexpectedly hospitalized due to severe pain resulting from complications of the December surgery.”“When the Secretary’s condition worsened on January 2 and he was transferred to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU), where he would not have access to secure communications, certain of his authorities were transferred” to the deputy secretary of defense, Kathleen Hicks, the report said. “There was not a common understanding in the department or by the deputy secretary that these transfers meant that, as a matter of law, she was serving as the acting secretary of defense during these periods.”Mr. Austin resumed his duties on January 5, the report says, but was still hospitalized until January 15. While he was in the hospital, the inspector general says he had “three additional medical procedures.” In two of those procedures, he was “moderately sedated” and was advised not to “engage in activities requiring unimpaired physical and mental ability” for 24 hours. “He was also advised that general anesthesia might be required. Nevertheless, Secretary Austin did not transfer his authorities, and the OIG found no evidence that a transfer was considered,” the report stated. It also found he was “unexpectedly hospitalized” on February 11 because of “significant medical complications.” However, it said, “Despite his severe condition and his later testimony to the OIG that he believed he had transferred his authorities before he went to the hospital, the OIG found that the weight of the evidence supported that the transfer did not occur until several hours later, after the secretary was again hospitalized.”Additionally, Mr. Storch said that there are “conflicting accounts” about whether Mr. Austin requested that the ambulance that arrived at his residence on January 1 did not use lights or sirens.However, the inspector general said, “Considering the impact of Secretary Austin’s condition at the time and the contemporaneous statements and actions of those involved, as well as the secretary’s strong desire for privacy about his medical condition…the OIG assessed that the weight of the evidence supported that Secretary Austin made these requests.”The inspector general’s report faulted Mr. Austin and Ms. Hicks for not notifying Congress or the White House about the hospitalizations in a “timely manner.” Mr. Storch offered 20 recommendations for the Defense Department, which he said the Pentagon agreed with. Mr. Austin’s trip to the hospital occurred amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, Israel’s war against Hamas, and as American forces were engaged with Houthi militants, raising concerns about how America would respond if a crisis had occurred.A Pentagon official told reporters on Wednesday, “There was no scandal, there was no cover-up and, in fact, the report found that at no time was the secretary incapacitated while carrying out his duties.“The report also found that at no time was there a break in command and control, and at no time were there any gaps in authorities or operational impacts,” the official said.In February 2024, Mr. Austin told reporters that “we did not handle this right” and conceded he should have informed President Biden of his cancer diagnosis. A Pentagon report, separate from the inspector general’s, released the same month found that the defense secretary had no “ill intent” in keeping his hospitalization secret, and it did not accuse him of wrongdoing.After the defense secretary’s hospitalization and the lack of notice to the White House was disclosed, Mr. Biden told reporters there was a lapse of judgment. Still, he said he had confidence in Mr. Austin and did not fire him.

Pentagon Inspector General Says Defense Secretary Austin ‘Unnecessarily’ Increased Risks to National Security With Secret Hospital Stays

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