House Republicans want Pentagon chief Austin to testify about controversial hospital stay

The GOP chairman of the House Armed Services Committee wants Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to testify before Congress about whether he instructed his staff not to tell anyone about his recent hospitalization.

On Thursday, Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama asked Mr. Austin to attend a Feb. 14 hearing before the committee to “hear your direct testimony regarding decisions made to withhold information from the President, Congress, and the American people.”

Mr. Rogers said the defense chief promised full transparency about what has become one of the most embarrassing incidents of his tenure at the Pentagon.

“I am alarmed you refused to answer whether you instructed your staff to not inform the President of the United States or anyone else of your hospitalization,” Mr. Rogers wrote. “This leads me to believe that information is being withheld from Congress. Congress must understand what happened and who made decisions to prevent the disclosure of the whereabouts of a cabinet secretary.”

On Jan. 1, Mr. Austin was rushed to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center over complications from his surgery in late December to treat prostate cancer. President Biden and senior White House officials were notified three days later about the hospitalization. Some of his responsibilities were transferred to Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks while she was on vacation, although she wasn’t initially told the reason.

Mr. Rogers also wants answers about the 911 call that resulted in the ambulance being sent to his home. It reportedly included a request for the ambulance’s arrival to be “subtle.”

“Who specifically made this request, and for what reason? Did you personally direct that this request be made, and if so, for what reason?” Mr. Rogers wrote in his letter.

Republicans in Congress and even some Democrats like Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts have criticized Mr. Austin’s actions over his hospitalization.

“As a former Marine lieutenant, I cannot imagine something like this happening at the lowest levels of our nation’s military chain of command. The fact that this occurred with the Secretary of Defense — and his own deputy, let along the President, didn’t know — is astounding,” Mr. Moulton said in a statement. “The Commander in Chief needs to make immediate changes that send a decisive message that this will never happen again.”

Despite keeping the White House out of the loop about his medical condition, Mr. Biden has not asked for Mr. Austin’s resignation and said he continues to maintain confidence in his defense chief.

Maintaining a robust military force in times of global instability requires everyone in the national security community to rely on the secretary of defense’s availability and transparency, Mr. Rogers wrote.

“Our country deserves reliable leadership at the Department” of Defense, he wrote. “Regrettably, you have not exhibited these attributes throughout this most recent string of events.”