The Biden administration is doing its best to keep this under wraps. But the cat is out of the bag.
And shocking news from the hospital sent the White House up in flames.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was released from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Tuesday and has resumed his full duties after being hospitalized for a second time since his prostate cancer diagnosis last December, the Pentagon announced.
“On the advice of his doctors, Secretary Austin will recuperate and perform his duties remotely from home for a period before returning to work at the Pentagon later this week,” the Department of Defense said in a statement.
“He has full access to the unclassified and classified communications systems necessary to perform his duties.”
The 70-year-old Pentagon commander has been dealing with persistent health concerns after covertly undergoing prostate cancer surgery in December, a diagnosis he kept from top government officials, including President Biden.
Austin was hospitalized to Walter Reed’s intensive care unit on Sunday for a bladder problem and had a non-surgical treatment under general anesthesia on Monday, according to his doctors.
“He remained in good condition throughout and no longer needed critical care monitoring on the morning of Feb. 13,” Dr. John Maddox, the trauma medical director, and Dr. Gregory Chesnut, director of the Center for Prostate Disease Research at the Murtha Cancer Center, of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, said in a statement.
The doctors observed that Austin has “progressed well” and that he is expected to “continue his full recovery.”
“The bladder issue was not related to his cancer diagnosis and will have no effect on his excellent cancer prognosis,” they added.
On Wednesday, Austin is slated to host a virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, where U.S. partners will discuss the escalating conflict between Kyiv and Moscow.
He was supposed to go to Brussels for the conference on Tuesday, but the trip was canceled due to his hospitalization.
In January, Austin sparked an uproar when it was revealed that he and his staff failed to notify military officials, Congress, and the White House about his cancer diagnosis and subsequent New Year’s Day hospitalization due to complications after prostatectomy surgery.
Austin was hospitalized for two weeks due to difficulties.
“I did not handle this right,” Austin said earlier this month.
“I should have told the president about my cancer diagnosis. I should have also told my team and the American public. I apologize to my teammates, and to the American people.”
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) has launched a formal congressional probe into Austin’s health crisis and lack of transparency.
The defense secretary is scheduled to go before the House Armed Services Committee later this month to answer concerns about his health and failure to inform the public.
And the American people demand accountability.
Stay tuned to the Conservative Column.
