Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
When I left active duty in 1980 and went to work in the civilian economy, I knew who my boss was and who my boss’ boss was. After that, the line of who was in charge, up to the chief executive of the company, was kind of fuzzy.
This was not true in the military, where I could name my bosses’ bosses, from my individual commander, up through the military rank structure to commandant and then secretary of defense and the commander in chief.
We were required to learn this chain of command in boot camp, and while the names changed in the chain, the concept remained the same. This construct is instilled in military members from day one.
Lloyd Austin graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1975, and retired from the U.S. Army as a general in 2016. He would be intimately aware of the chain of command, as he was an important link in that chain for many years. That’s why his failure to notify the president of his impending hospitalization is so incomprehensible.
While former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has called this a “stunning breach of protocol,” President Biden called it a “lapse in judgment.” After more than 40 years of adhering to, and insisting on others following, the chain of command, “lapse in judgement” begs the question.
According to news reports, the White House has launched a review of the notification procedures that Cabinet secretaries must follow if they are unable to perform their duties.
If Cabinet secretaries need a procedure to notify the president when they will be away from their duties, they are not smart enough to be Cabinet secretaries.
When a military private, with an ingrown toenail, goes to sick call, he notifies his corporal, or he is absent from his appointed place of duty and can face disciplinary action.
Further questions remain as, according to Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Austin was in contact with his senior staff, had access to secure communications and was monitoring the Pentagon’s day-to-day operations worldwide. Why did Ryder know this and the president didn’t? The chair of the House Armed Services Committee has apparently opened a “formal inquiry” into the issue.
That’s what Congress is good at -- opening formal inquiries.
Lloyd Austin should step down. I wait with bated breath for the report from the Armed Services Committee’s formal inquiry.
Rube Render is a former Clovis city commissioner and former chair of the Curry County Republican Party. Contact him: