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The Pentagon reported yesterday, Friday, that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was transferred to Walter Reed Military Hospital near Washington due to health complications.
According to the Washington Post, Austin was transferred on the evening of January 1 due to complications that occurred as a result of a non-emergency medical procedure.
Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said in a statement, “At every moment, the Deputy Secretary of Defense was prepared to act and use the secretary’s powers when necessary.” Without specifying the nature of the complications or the length of his stay in the hospital,
another Pentagon spokesman said that Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks is automatically authorized to assume the minister’s duties if he is unable to do so, noting that she had already made “routine decisions on behalf of (Austin) last week.”