The material in the text chain “contains operational details of the strike against Iran-backed Hussebel in Yemen, including information about the targets, weapons and attack sequences that the United States will deploy.”
It is not clear whether the details of military operations have been classified, but they are often and at least kept safe to protect service personnel and operations. The United States has launched air strikes on Hotis since militant groups began targeting commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea in November 2023.
Just two hours after Goldberg received details of the March 15 attack, the United States began a series of air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.
The National Security Council is investigating the National Security Council said in a statement that it is looking at how to add reporters’ phone numbers to the signaling group chat. In addition to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, there are Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump’s Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Goldberg said he received a signal invitation from Trump’s national security adviser Mike Waltz, who was also in the group chat.
Hegseth, in his first comments on the matter, attacked Goldberg as “deceptive” and “smeared so-called journalist” while suggesting previous critical reports of Trump in the publication. He did not clarify why signals were used to discuss sensitive operations or Goldberg’s final results on the message chain.
Hegseth, who started his first trip to the Indo-Pacific as a defense secretary on Monday, said in a conversation with reporters after landing in Hawaii: “No one plans to send text messages, that’s what I’m going to say.”
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement late Monday that the president still has “greatest confidence” in waltz and the national security team.
“I know nothing about it. It’s the first time you told me,” Trump told reporters earlier Monday, adding that the Atlantic Ocean is not a magazine. ”
By the evening, the president jokingly threw it aside. He amplified a social media post from Elon Musk, focusing on a conservative satirical news website article titled: “4D Chess: Genius Trump leaks war plans, “Atlantic”, no one will see them.”
Government officials have used signals to organize signals, but they are not classified and can be hacked. Privacy and tech experts say the popular end-to-end encrypted messaging and voice calling apps are safer than traditional texting.
The sharing of sensitive information was quickly generated as Hegses’s office just announced a crackdown on leaks of sensitive information, including the use of a lie detector on defense personnel to determine how journalists received the information.
Sean Parnell, a spokesman for Hegseth, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why the Secretary of Defense posted a plan for war operations on unclassified applications.
Democratic lawmakers quickly condemned the government’s handling of highly sensitive information. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for a full investigation.
“This is one of the most amazing military intelligence I’ve ever read in a very, very long time,” Schumer, a Democrat in New York, said in a speech Monday afternoon.
“If it is true, this story represents one of the worst operational security and common sense failures I have ever seen,” Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Forces Committee, said in a statement.
He said that life in the United States is on “the line. The carelessness shown by the Trump Cabinet is amazing and dangerous. I will seek the government’s answer right away.”
Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat in Connecticut, said in a statement that he was “shocked” by the report.
Himes said if a lower-level official “does what is described here, they may lose permission and be under criminal investigation.
Some Republicans also expressed concern.
“We are very worried about this and we will investigate it in a bipartisan way,” Sen. Roger Wicker, Republican of Mississippi, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters on Monday.
Reid said he will talk to Wicker about the actions the committee will take to “follow up” the signal leak.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he wanted to learn more about what was going on.
“Obviously, we have to run it on the ground and figure out what’s going on there,” said Thun, a Republican of South Dakota.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson proposed a particularly tolerant posture.
“I think it’s a terrible mistake to have adverse consequences for anyone who participates in that call,” Johnson said. “They try to do well and the mission is done precisely.”
There are strict laws surrounding the processing of defense information, and according to the Centenary History of Espionage Act, the law strictly governs the processing of defense information in the State, including the provisions for the removal of such information from its “appropriate custody”, even through serious negligence.
The Justice Department investigated in 2015 and 2016 whether former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had classified information with her assistant on a private email server she set up, and although the FBI finally recommended targeting the allegations, no one was raised.
According to a former national security official, some officials in the Biden administration were allowed to download signals on mobile phones issued by the White House, but were instructed to use the app very rarely.
The official asked to talk anonymously about the methods used to share sensitive information, saying signals are most commonly used to convey what they internally call “tippers” to inform someone that when they leave the office or travel abroad they should check their “high side” inbox for classified information.
Sometimes during the Biden administration, officials also sometimes use the app to communicate about arrangements for scheduling sensitive meetings or confidential phone calls outside the office, the official said.
In the final year of the Biden administration, federal law enforcement officials warned that China and Iran attacked the White House and officials in the first Trump administration, and the use of signals became more common, according to officials.
The official is unaware of senior Biden administration officials – such as Vice President Kamala Harris, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan – using signals to discuss sensitive plans for Trump administration officials.
Some of the toughest criticisms are against former Fox News Network weekend host Hegseth. “The most unqualified defense minister in history is proving his incompetence by literally leaking confidential war plans in group chats,” said Senator Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran, on social media.
The leak reveals an internal debate about Houthi’s action in the chain of news, questioning whether Americans would understand the importance of strikes brought about by the risk of “medium to severe surge in oil prices” if the timing of the action could be “mistake”.
“I’m willing to support the consensus of the team and put those concerns on myself,” Vance said. “But there’s a strong argument to delay that number for a month, do messaging work to understand why it’s important, see where the economy is, etc.”
Vance also indicated that Europe would benefit more than the United States through actions aimed at destroying Houthis and obtaining the Red Sea shipping route.
“If you think we should do it, go for it. I just hate Europe going out again,” one of Vance and Heggs said back and forth.
“I totally share your dislike of European freeloading. It’s sad,” Heggs replied. He added: “I think we should go.”
William Martin, the vice president’s director of communications, downplayed the debate in a statement. Vance “clearly supports the government’s foreign policy,” he said.
