Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), the ranking member on the House Armed Services Committee, believes President Joe Biden should at least consider removing Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin after the top defense official let days go by without notifying the administration that he had been hospitalized.
In an interview with CNN on Tuesday evening, Mr. Smith called the defense secretary’s multi-day delay in notifying the Biden administration and Congress of his hospitalization “very troubling.”
Mr. Austin underwent an elective medical procedure on Dec. 22 and was discharged the following day. Mr. Austin began experiencing severe pain on Jan. 1 and was admitted to an intensive care unit at the Walter Reed Military Medical Center. According to a timeline provided by Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Mr. Austin’s chief of staff notified the deputy secretary of defense and the White House national security adviser of his hospitalization on the afternoon of Jan. 4. Members of Congress weren’t notified of the situation until the afternoon of Jan. 5….
