What happened to Marine Commandant Eric Smith? Top general hospitalized after medical emergency

On Sunday, October 29, Marine Corps Commandant General Eric Smith had to be hospitalized after suffering from a heart attack. The most senior member of the Marine Corps headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, Lt. Gen. Karsten Heckl, will take over the position of Commandant. Further details regarding the Commandant General’s condition have not been released at the time of writing this article.

Apart from being the Commandant, General Smith was also performing the duties of the assistant Commandant, a vacant position to which Lt. Gen. Christopher Mahoney was nominated. Mahoney could not take up the position due to a holdup in general and flag officer nominations resulting from Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s protest against the Pentagon’s policy to reimburse service members for abortions.

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Commandant General Eric Smith hospitalized amidst dual-job dilemma

The news of Marine Corps Commandant General Eric Smith's hospitalization was confirmed by a statement from the United States Marine Corps on Monday, October 30. The statement read that additional information regarding the General's condition would be released "at a later time."

Gen. Eric M. Smith is the 39th Commandant of the United States Marine Corps. The duties of the Commandant will now be performed by U.S. Marine Corps, Lt. Gen. Karsten Heckl. According to the Marine Corps statement, the decision for Karsten Heckl to take over was based on his being the most senior officer of the Marine Corps in the Headquarters.

No information regarding his treatment, including where he is being treated and the progress of his treatment, is available at the moment. According to a statement made by a Marine Corps official to The Washington Post, the Commandant General's family requested for no further information regarding the general's condition to be made public.

General Eric Smith, previously the Marine Corps Assistant Commandant, assumed the duties of the United States Marine Corps Acting Commandant General following the retirement of his predecessor, Commandant General David Hilberry Berger, in July 2023. He was officially instated as the Commandant General on September 22, 2023.

Eric Smith's ascension into the office came amidst political turmoil. Alabama Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville issued a blockade, halting around 400 flag and general officer nominations. The blockade was in protest against the Pentagon's policies regarding reproductive health.

Senator Tuberville protested the Pentagon policy that assured the reimbursement of funds required for service members to travel out of state to receive abortions. Tuberville pointed out that the Hyde Amendment banned the usage of federal funds for abortions, the only exceptions being a threat to the life of the mother resulting from pregnancy or pregnancy resulting from incest or r*pe.

This led Commandant General Eric Smith to assume the responsibility of Marine Corps Assistant Commandant, even though Lt. Gen. Christopher Mahoney was awaiting confirmation after being nominated for the position. In a Defense News Conference in Arlinton, Eric Smith talked about his cramped two-job work schedule that caused him to lose out on sleep.

The Marine Corps Times quoted the Commandant General as saying:

"I make plenty of money, and nobody usually yells at me, so that’s good. But it is not a sustainable thing when the last thing you do is flip your computer off at 11:30 at night and you’re getting up at 5 o’clock in the morning. Working on five hours of sleep over periods of time, there will be sloppiness."

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As mentioned above, no further details regarding Eric Smith's condition were released. Lt. Gen. Karsten Heckl will assume the duties of Eric Smith for now. Karsten Heckl is the Deputy Commandant for Combat Development and Integration, a post that was held by Smith in 2019.