Congressman Chris Deluzio called for U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s resignation, becoming the first Democrat to publicly support the removal of the Pentagon leader for a hospitalization scandal that has engulfed the Biden administration.
Deluzio said he “lost trust in Secretary Lloyd Austin’s leadership,” joining criticism of the secretary for failing to quickly notify key officials when he was first hospitalized in late December.
“I have a solemn duty in Congress to conduct oversight of the Defense Department through my service on the House Armed Services Committee. That duty today requires me to call on Secretary Austin to resign," Deluzio said.
Other Democrats have raised questions about Austin’s hospitalization, but have yet to call for the secretary’s resignation.
Several Republicans have accused Austin of dereliction of duty and are calling for his ouster.
What happened to Lloyd Austin?
Austin, who has prostate cancer, first learned of the cancer diagnosis in early December and had a related surgery on December 22.
On January 1, Austin struggled with a urinary tract infection related to the surgery and was hospitalized in the intensive care unit. U.S. President Joe Biden and the White House did not learn of his hospitalization until January 4.
Austin, who is recovering at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Washington, D.C., has acknowledged the concerns around transparency and pledged to improve, as has the Pentagon, which is conducting a review of the incident.
