Elizabeth Warren Probably Shouldn't Make This Argument Against Hegseth

Leah Barkoukis | January 24, 2025 8:30 AM

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) was called out for her argument against Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, with those on the right reminding her about what transpired under Lloyd Austin in the previous administration.

"The Secretary of Defense has to be ready to go 24 hours a day, 365 days a year," she said, sharing a clip of her objections to Hegseth on MSNBC.

“We cannot trust the safety of our country to someone who has demonstrated repeatedly using very bad judgment with alcohol and doing it in ways that truly have incapacitated him,” she argued on the network. “This is not a moment to take that kind of risk with our national security and I hope that all 53 Republicans are thinking very hard about that.”

But as she was reminded, Austin transferred his responsibilities to a subordinate on two occasions last year alone without informing Congress, as federal law requires, an IG report found.

Released by the office of the Department of Defense (DOD) inspector general, the report primarily focuses on a controversy involving Austin that arose in January 2024. The defense secretary was admitted to Walter Reed’s ICU on Jan. 1 after reportedly “experiencing severe pain,” which seemingly stemmed from an “initial medical procedure” he underwent on Dec. 22, 2023, according to The Guardian.
The report confirms Austin’s procedure was related to a prostate cancer diagnosis. [...]
[T]he American people, Congress, and high-ranking Biden administration officials — including President Biden — were unaware of Austin’s absence for several days. Even Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks — whom Austin transferred his responsibilities to and was vacationing in Puerto Rico at the time — was also unaware of the situation until she was briefed on the matter days after Austin was admitted to the ICU.
But it appears that wasn’t the only instance in which Austin failed to properly notify relevant authorities about transferring his duties to Hicks.
According to Wednesday’s IG report, the Pentagon “did not report two [Assumption of Functions and Duties] AFDs, occurring on June 17, 2024, and June 21, 2024, to the Comptroller General and Congress” as required by federal law and DOD policy. (The Federalist)