The Pentagon's internal watchdog said Thursday he will review the secrecy surrounding Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s hospitalization and why the Defense Department waited days to inform the White House that he had transferred authority to his deputy.
Austin, 70, is still in the hospital being treated for complications from prostate cancer surgery. His failure to disclose his hospitalization has been sharply criticized by members of both political parties and has led to some calls for his resignation, while the idea that the civilian head of the U.S. military could step away from responsibility unnoticed continues to generate questions.
At the White House on Thursday, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said there were limits to how closely the government could track the whereabouts of officials, even those like Austin who are in the line of succession. He said the White House Situation Room inquires about the location of Cabinet secretaries and whether they are in the capital region.
“We check in every day and we know where they are,” he said. “We’re not going to plant a microchip in their necks like a poodle."
But Kirby said procedures would likely change. “We’ll get better at this,” he said. “We’ll learn from this.”
The review by the Defense Department's inspector general, Robert P. Storch, is one of several now underway related to Austin's hospitalization. Storch said his review will "examine the roles, processes, procedures, responsibilities, and actions" related to Austin's hospitalization and assess whether Pentagon policies and procedures "are sufficient to ensure timely and appropriate notifications and the effective transition of authorities as may be warranted due to health-based or other unavailability of senior leadership.”
The White House and Pentagon are also conducting their own reviews.
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Austin was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Dec. 22 and underwent surgery to treat the cancer, which was detected earlier in the month during a routine screening. He developed an infection a week later and was hospitalized Jan. 1 and admitted to intensive care.
President Joe Biden and senior administration officials were not told about Austin’s hospitalization until Jan. 4, and Austin kept the cancer diagnosis secret until Tuesday.
The incident led the White House and Pentagon immediately to formalize policies for which officials will be notified anytime a Cabinet member transfers authority to one of their deputies because they will be indisposed for any reason. This includes not just because of medical treatment but, in an example the Pentagon used this week, when the secretary is traveling and does not have immediate access to secure communications.
Austin’s secrecy also prompted criticism from Congress members on both sides of the political aisle. Republican Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said he has opened a formal inquiry into the matter.
Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the inspector general review is “good news.” Republicans on the panel had expressed concerns that an internal review would be conducted by people involved in the episode, Wicker said.
He said Republicans still want to know more about Austin’s absence from doctors or Defense Department officials.
That the defense secretary had to be taken to the hospital by ambulance “is an occurrence of such magnitude and importance and seriousness that certainly key members of the department, including his own deputy, should be notified," Wicker said.
It is still unclear how Austin's cancer treatment will affect his travel or other public engagements going forward. Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks has been taking on some of his day-to-day duties as he recovers.
Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick and Zeke Miller contributed to this report.
