The Austin auscultation

The Austin Auscultation might be the title Robert Ludlum would have given to a suspense novel if he were inspired by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s secret hospitalization. It doesn’t have quite the ring of The Bourne Ultimatum and other of his Bourne series thrillers, but it could do.

Secretary Austin’s hospitalization was so secret that it was kept strictly within the Pentagon’s five sides. Politico reports: “The Pentagon did not tell President Joe Biden and other top officials about Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s hospitalization for three days, three U.S. officials said.” The story continues:

[T]he news of Austin’s situation came as a shock to all White House staff as they were unaware the Pentagon boss was dealing with complications following an elective medical procedure, the officials said. National Security Council staffers were surprised it took the Pentagon so long to let them know of Austin’s status. The Pentagon didn’t make the information public until Friday evening, notifying Congress about 15 minutes before releasing a public statement.

“This should not have happened this way,” said one of the U.S. officials. The NSC and Pentagon declined comment.

In a Saturday statement after an earlier version of this story published, Austin said, “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.”

I hope Secretary Austin is doing well. It sounds like he is. “Could have done a better job” is a tad understated. Unfortunately, it applies generally to the Austin-era Pentagon.

The Biden administration’s secret deal with Iran is a bigger scandal. The Austin auscultation pales beside it, but some explanation beyond “could have done better” is required.