After days of not knowing the whereabouts of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the White House still doesn't know where exactly he's making major decisions or taking phone calls. Austin remains at Walter Reed Medical Center after secretly undergoing surgery for prostate cancer in December, resulting in an infection that landed him in the intensive care unit last week.
When asked about where Austin is making national security decisions, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby couldn't specify Wednesday whether Austin was taking calls to a hospital bed or somewhere else within the hospital.
"You said that Secretary Austin took part in the conversations regarding the Red Sea. Do you know if he was conducting his business from the bedside, or is he released from the hospital?" a reporter asked.
"I would refer you to the Pentagon for his whereabouts and his condition. It's our under..yesterday, at least for where he is today. Yesterday, he was still in the hospital when he participated in that discussion," Kirby responded.
White House still can’t say whether the Secretary of Defense is making decisions from a hospital bed or elsewhere in the hospital. This comes as attacks continue on Americans in the Middle East.
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) January 10, 2024
Kirby was also pressed on the "essential" description given to Austin considering that for days nobody in the White House noticed he was missing.
REPORTER: "You said [SecDef Austin] is an essential member of this administration, but if he can disappear without anybody noticing...how essential is he?!:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 10, 2024
KIRBY: "The military operations that have been conducted over the past week...Secretary Austin was a key member..." pic.twitter.com/PuaciwwNCh
Since Austin was secretly hospitalized, Iranian backed groups have attacked American troops in the Middle East nearly a dozen times. Commercial shipping in the Red Sea has been brought to a halt due to an onslaught of missile and drone attacks from the Iranian backed Houthis in Yemen.
As the Pentagon revealed Defense Secretary Austin’s prostate cancer diagnosis & treatment Tuesday, the Houthi’s launched their largest attack in the Red Sea to date. Wednesday marks Austin’s 9th day in the hospital as he recovers from complications from his Dec 22 procedure
— Liz Friden (@Liz_Friden) January 10, 2024