The Pentagon on Monday attempted an explanation following its bombshell announcement late last week that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been secretly hospitalized for days in the intensive care unit -- without the White House or Congress being notified.

Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the Pentagon's top spokesman, in a public briefing that went for more than an hour, blamed a series of issues -- including Austin's chief of staff coming down with the flu and his own failure to follow up -- for the public and key government officials being unaware the defense secretary was sidelined at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland.

Despite the Pentagon's explanation, it remained unclear exactly how or why Austin, a cabinet secretary and the civilian head of the military -- who was still hospitalized but back in control of the Pentagon on Monday, effectively hid a health emergency for nearly four days from not only President Joe Biden but also Congress and the American people.

For any cabinet official, the White House chief of staff would typically be informed about their whereabouts and whether they may be out of reach for a period, said Peter Feaver, a professor and expert on civil-military relations at Duke University who was a White House adviser to former President George W. Bush.

Because the defense secretary is in the chain of command, there is usually even more care to ensure lines of communication aren't broken, he said.

Members of Congress demanded answers following the Pentagon announcement late Friday that Austin was hospitalized, and some Republicans called on him to resign, including former President Donald Trump, who is the front-runner for the party in the upcoming presidential election.

At the Monday briefing, Ryder said Austin was out of the intensive care unit and that "his prognosis is good." The defense secretary had received operational updates, including his presidential daily brief on Monday, he added.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced new funding for research into the potential use of psychedelic substances to treat post-traumatic stress disorder and depression in former military personnel.

The VA on Friday issued a request for applications from researchers and academic institutions on potential research into the safety and efficacy of psychedelic drugs such as MDMA, psilocybin -- the active ingredient in "magic mushrooms" -- and other compounds to address mental health conditions.

According to the VA, it is the first time in nearly six decades the department will fund such research and comes amid a growing but cautious optimism among the veteran community and Congress that the drugs, widely associated with illicit party culture, could offer breakthrough treatments for the unseen wounds of war and military service.
"Veterans and VA researchers have told us about the potential promise of psychedelics to treat mental health conditions for some time," VA Under Secretary for Health Dr. Shereef Elnahal said in a statement Friday. "Now is our chance to study this potential method of treating veterans with PTSD and major depression across the country."

VA researchers previously have conducted studies on the use of psychedelics, including MDMA, known also as the recreational drug molly or ecstasy, and psilocybin, but those studies have been funded by private institutions.

Officials did not say how much funding the department plans to award researchers for the studies. The details of the request for application were not available as it has yet to be published online.

On Dec. 19, the U.S. Senate confirmed the last remaining four-star generals and admirals whose promotions had been blocked for the last 10 months. With these votes, we can finally close the book on Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville's one-person crusade against the U.S. military.

But before we move too quickly past this saga, it's important that we pause to analyze how our military community overcame this blockade. If we don't, we leave the door open to future lawmakers repeating the same shenanigans and worsening the permanent damage this political stunt has already done to U.S. national security.

The story of Tuberville's failed blockade is essentially the story of a schoolyard bully. For months, the senator picked on a group of people who couldn't fight back, over a policy disagreement they had nothing to do with. And he almost got away with it. A number of strong, powerful people tried to fight back with stern letters and press conferences, but to no avail.

What finally tipped the scales was a group of diverse voices who didn't seem that strong or powerful on their own but, by working together, they managed to win the day.

That group? Regular, everyday military spouses and families who finally said, "Enough! We are not your bargaining chips."