White House will review defense secretary’s hospitalization notification, but Biden has no plans to fire him

“We will obviously, I think, as you might expect, we’ll take a look at the process and procedure here and try to learn from this experience,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters aboard Air Force One.

He said if there are changes required following that review, the White House would implement them.

“I think there’s an expectation that when a Cabinet official becomes hospitalized … that will be notified up the chain of command. There is that expectation,” Kirby said.

Still, Kirby said Biden retains confidence in Austin and looks forward to seeing him return to the Pentagon.

“I think our main focus right now is on Secretary Austin’s health and making sure that he gets all the care and the support that he needs to fully recover,” Kirby said.

“There is no plans or anything other than for Secretary Austin to stay in the job and continue in the leadership that he’s been been demonstrating,” he added.

Austin is facing intense questions after it was revealed on Friday that he had been hospitalized at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for days without notifying the public. It was subsequently reported that Biden, senior national security officials and even Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks – who had assumed Austin’s duties – were not aware of the Defense secretary’s hospitalization until three days after he was admitted.

In a statement Saturday, Austin said, “I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. 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.”

On Monday, Kirby said Austin “took ownership” of the situation in that statement, a step he said Biden “respects.”

“He also respects the amazing job he’s done as Defense secretary. Now he’s handled multiple crises over the last almost three years now. And (he) very much values his advice,” Kirby said.

White House press seecretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden has “complete confidence” in Austin and looks forward to having him back at the Pentagon.

She declined to say whether Biden knows what the initial medical procedure was that resulted in Austin’s hospitalization.

Kirby described the review process to be undertaken as “akin to a hot wash” as officials look to “see if processes and procedures need to be changed at all or modified so that we can learn from this.” A “hot wash” is a term used by the government to describe an intense, quick review of a situation.

Kirby confirmed no one in the White House or the National Security Council knew of Austin’s situation until Thursday afternoon, saying the process in place at the White House accounts only for principal’s general whereabouts.

“There’s a process for the Situation Room, the ops center, to check in every morning to get the general location of all the non-White House principals, Cabinet officers,” he said. “There is a process of connection to the agencies to do that. But it’s generic. It’s for what town they’re in, DC or overseas, where they are. That’s the process. The issue of when a Cabinet official gets hospitalized, that’s really on the agency to inform that that has happened.”

This is a breaking story and will be updated.

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