walter reed national military medical center

The United States Secretary of Defense, Lloyd J. Austin III, has been hospitalized for symptoms of a bladder issue, leading to the transfer of duties to Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks. The development was confirmed by Pentagon Press Secretary Major Gen. Pat Ryder on Monday.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who is fighting prostate cancer, transferred his duties to his deputy hours after he was taken to hospital for "an emergent bladder issue," a spokesman said Sunday.

President Joe Biden briefly transferred power to Vice President Kamala Harris on Nov. 19 while he underwent a routine colonoscopy, setting up a history-making moment as Harris became the first woman to hold that authority during the short time she stepped in as acting president.

A former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, secretary of state and national security adviser, Mr. Powell died on Monday, his family said.

Former President Donald Trump's struggle with COVID-19 was "far more serious" than the public knew, and officials leapfrogged protocol for an experimental drug treatment not available to other Americans, according to a new book by Washington Post reporters.