Joe Biden’s ever-brilliant and honorable Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wants everyone to compassionate his medical absence that endangered America’s national security. But he has no intention of reinstating military members who were kicked out for a medical decision: refusing the experimental COVID-19 vaccines.
On Feb. 29, the House Armed Services Committee held a hearing regarding Austin’s recent failure to notify Biden of his hospitalization. Austin’s responses to questioning from Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) indicate that while the secretary wants tolerance of his risky medical absence, he has no intention of reinstating the more than 8,000 military members who were forced out of the military during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the fact that the COVID-19 vaccines available for the public were not approved, only emergency use authorized, thousands of American servicemen had to leave the military for being unvaccinated. A number of vaccinated military reported vaccine injuries.
BREAKING: As Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin begs Congress for grace and forgiveness after his unauthorized absence was exposed earlier this year, he REFUSED to give that same grace to the 8,600 service members he kicked out due to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate!
— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) February 29, 2024
GAETZ: “Now that… pic.twitter.com/MuVZgBfA9m
Gaetz provided a transcript of his back-and-forth with Austin, highlighting the latter’s hypocrisy. To be clear, Austin’s being AWOL was a problem because the chain of command thus had a vital missing link at a time of national and international instability and potential start of war. Ultimately, it seems as if there is a whole different set of rules for Democrat government officials than there is for the rest of America.
Rep. Gaetz: You didn't tell the President that you had cancer, that you were being treated for cancer, or that the treatment for that cancer had gone wrong, because you saw it as personal and medical. And I think a lot of us have empathy for you in that regard. But now that you see how personal medical decisions are, will you call for the re0recruitment, [sic] restoration of full rank and back pay for the 8,600 service members who were Vax mandated out of the military?
Secretary Austin: No, I won't.
Rep. Gaetz: So on March 4, 2021, you authored a memo, it was entitled message to the force. And in that memo, you said that there would be clear and swift accountability for anyone who didn't meet the highest standards of the Department of Defense. Now, however, this worked out, we all acknowledge that what you did here didn't meet the highest standards, right? You made a mistake?
Secretary Austin: I admitted to--
Rep. Gaetz: So we got that. So then the question is what becomes the clear and swift accountability now? You're not going to be discharged, right? No?
Secretary Austin: That's right.
Gaetz noted that, unlike the unvaccinated military, Austin will not only not be facing suspension, he will not be demoted or have his pay cut. In other words, he will face no serious consequences for his risky decision. The congressman compared this situation to the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant that Jesus tells in Matthew 18. After having his own debt forgiven, a servant gets in trouble with his master again after refusing to provide the same forgiveness to his fellow servant, who owed him a much smaller sum of money.
“Mr. Secretary, you come to us seeking forgiveness, but you offer none,” Gaetz accused. “You make a mistake, like on the vax mandate, and here regarding your notification, then you get busted.” He continued, “President Biden had to sign something into law reversing your vax mandate, you got busted here not because you came forward, but because we learned of this through other means. And then after you get busted making it a mistake, you want that benefit, but you don't want to extend it to others. This isn't swift or clear. You're not meeting your own standards that you set for yourself.”
But that is what Democrats do best.
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