Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) has placed a hold on the promotion of Lt. Gen. Ronald Clark to become commander of Army forces in the Pacific, as The Washington Post first reported. The hold-up is related to Clark’s role in Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s January hospitalization that went undisclosed for days. Clark was Austin’s senior military assistant at the time.

“Sen. Tuberville has concerns about Lt. Gen. Clark’s actions during Secretary Austin’s hospitalization,” a spokesperson told The Washington Post. “Lt. Gen. Clark knew that Sec. Austin was incapacitated and did not tell the Commander in Chief. As a senior commissioned officer, Lt. Gen. Clark’s oath requires him to notify POTUS when the chain of command is compromised.”

Tuberville’s office indicated he is waiting for a forthcoming report from the DOD inspector general about how Austin’s illness was handled.

Tuberville last year held up hundreds of promotions and confirmations in protest of DOD’s abortion access policy. He eventually relented, and the Senate quickly cleared the backlog.

DOD photo by Lisa Ferdinando