MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough appeared baffled that Department of Defense Sec. Lloyd Austin has not been fired for keeping the administration in the dark about his hospitalization.
Austin underwent elective surgery on Dec. 22 to treat pancreatic cancer, then was later admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on Jan. 1 due to suffering from “severe pain” resulting from a urinary tract infection (UTI). Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr., who is not in the chain of command, learned of his hospitalization on Jan. 2, and the Department of Defense (DOD) did not notify key White House leaders until Jan. 4.
“I just gotta ask, how does the secretary survive this?” Scarborough asked The Washington Post’s David Ignatius.
“Well, I don’t see him being fired,” Ignatius said.
“Why not?” the MSNBC host interjected.
“Because Joe Biden likes him and basically trusts him,” Ignatius added.
“Would any other secretary of Defense survive this?” Scarborough pondered. “He went awol for three, four days. He’s in the nuclear chain of command.” (RELATED: Brian Kilmeade Loses It Over Lloyd Austin’s Disappearance)
Ignatius said the “lack of communication” from Austin has been ongoing since the beginning of President Joe Biden’s administration. He said he cannot imagine Austin being terminated from his position during an election year.
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Tuesday the lack of communication by Austin is “not good” and the administration plans to learn from this.
A White House official told the Daily Caller that the president does not intend to fire Austin over the incident.
Austin released a statement apologizing for the lack of transparency regarding his health.
“I also understand the media concerns about transparency and I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed,” Austin said in the statement. “I commit to doing better. But this is important to say: This was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”