The Department of Defense has announced that it will conduct a review of the process by which top leaders are notified about the transfer of duties from the secretary of defense. This comes following a week of confusion and backlash from senior officials, the public, and news media, as they were kept in the dark about the hospitalization and work absence of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
In a statement released on Monday evening, the Department of Defense stated that Jennifer Walsh, the director of Administration and Management, will lead the review. The purpose of this review is to identify the relevant facts and circumstances surrounding the events that occurred during Austin’s hospitalization and to evaluate the processes and procedures in place for notifying senior officials and the public.
According to a memo sent to senior DOD staff by Austin’s chief of staff, Kelly Magsamen, the review aims to ensure clarity and transparency when certain authorities are transferred, as well as proper and timely notification to the president, Congress, and the public. The review is expected to be completed within 30 days.
The reason for this review stems from the fact that Austin’s hospitalization was not immediately brought to the attention of President Biden and top officials, due to his chief of staff being out sick. This resulted in a breakdown of the notification process, as Austin’s hospitalization was not disclosed to the public until several days later.
Austin was admitted to the intensive care unit at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Jan. 1 for severe pain and complications following a recent elective medical procedure, according to Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder. However, the public and Congress were not notified until Friday, several days after the fact.
Ryder stated on Monday that the delay in notification was due to Austin’s chief of staff, Kelly Magsamen, being ill with the flu and unable to make notifications until Thursday. She then informed Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks and national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, about Austin’s hospitalization. However, the National Security Council and President Biden were not notified until Thursday as well.
In a statement released by the Pentagon, Ryder acknowledged that he and other senior officials were informed about Austin’s hospitalization on Jan. 2 but did not make it public and did not inform military service leaders or the National Security Council until days later. He also apologized for the delay and pledged to learn from the experience.
The lack of notification has sparked outrage among congressional leaders and the news media responsible for covering the Pentagon. In his statement, Austin took responsibility for the delays in notification and apologized for not ensuring the public was appropriately informed. He also stated that the decision to disclose his hospitalization was his own, and he takes full responsibility for it.
Ryder confirmed that the Pentagon staff had followed the proper procedure for reviewing and approving the Jan. 4 strike that killed a militia leader in Baghdad. He also stated that Austin has no plans to resign and no senior Defense Department officials have been asked to resign as a result of the delays in notification.
In response to the criticism, Ryder announced that the staff in Austin’s front office will review notification procedures to ensure that such delays do not happen in the future. This includes assessing whether regulations, rules, or laws were broken, and implementing steps to improve the notification process. It is important to note that the staff who will be conducting this review are among those who did not disclose Austin’s hospitalization.
