Biden Retains Confidence in Lloyd Austin

“President Biden retains confidence in Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, officials said Sunday, despite widespread surprise and consternation following the Pentagon chief’s failure to disclose a prolonged hospitalization to the White House or the public last week,” the Washington Post reports.

“Officials have scrambled to piece together information about the episode that landed Austin, a former Army general, in intensive care at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington on Jan. 1. The hospitalization was not made public until after 5 p.m. on Jan. 5, when a Pentagon spokesman announced that Austin, 70, had required care for a complication resulting from an elective medical procedure.”

Meanwhile, Donald Trump said last night Austin “should be fired immediately for improper professional conduct and dereliction of duty.”