It was learned late this week that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been hospitalized at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center since Monday night.
The 70-year-old former Army general apparently suffered complications from an elective surgical procedure. What’s striking is that, while the public learned of it late, the White House apparently learned of it late, too.
Shortly after Austin said he would “take full responsibility” for his “decisions about disclosure” of an unknown medical procedure, Politico National Security reporter Alexander Ward joined WTOP’s Ian Crawford to talk about why the news was delayed.
The transcript below has been lightly edited for clarity.
Ian Crawford: When were the president and the White House National Security team told that Secretary Austin was even in the hospital?
Alexander Ward: They were told Thursday evening, so a full three days after Austin went into the hospital. No one at the White House knew — that includes President Joe Biden, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, others, even at the Pentagon, didn’t know. Pentagon offices weren’t aware of Austin’s whereabouts. Some people were told that Austin was just working from home that week. So it was a … lot of secrecy around his condition.
Ian Crawford: Have the president and the secretary had a chance to speak since all this blew over?
Alexander Ward: Yes. I have been informed by a U.S. official that they spoke very recently this (Saturday) evening. It was a quote, unquote, cordial conversation. The president is looking forward to seeing Austin back at the Pentagon. So, if there were any speculation that Austin was going to lose his job over this, it doesn’t look that way.
Ian Crawford: This question is an obvious one. Why the cone of silence? Have the people you’ve spoken with told you why this news was delayed getting to the president and the national security team?
Alexander Ward: It’s very unclear. We don’t know exactly why Austin wanted this quiet. He said in a statement today that it was his responsibility — he wasn’t the reason for why nothing was communicated to the public or the White House. But we don’t exactly know why other than it was (an) elective procedure. He seems to feel that … he should have some privacy around his medical well being. That said, if you look into Austin’s history, he has long shied from the spotlight. He doesn’t like speaking that often to the press. He doesn’t like being in the headlines. And he thinks that it also helps him wield more influence inside the administration — that if he can … keep out of the drama, then he will be able to be a more important figure in the interagency process.
Ian Crawford: What are we hearing about this from the Hill?
Alexander Ward: There’s tons of criticism coming from Republicans. Sen. Roger Wicker, who’s the top Republican in the Senate Armed Services Committee, has already called for a hearing on this. Sen. Tom Cotton has called for Austin to explain himself promptly. A bit of silence from Democrats at this point, but I think we can expect this to be a congressional brouhaha for a bit.
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