A Signal group chat accidentally revealed war plans pertaining to an attack on the Houthis to journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, as well as personal family members and staff of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Goldberg, Editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, was added to a Signal Group Chat named “Houthi PC small group” on March 24, 2025.
According to Goldberg, the chat included Mike Waltz, JD Vance, Marco “MAR” Rubio, Hegseth, John Ratcliffe, Tulsi “TG” Gabbard, Stephen “SM” Miller, Steve Witkoff, Scott “Scott B.” Bessent, Susie Wiles, Alex Wong, Joe Kent and Brian “Brian” McCormack. The names in quotes are Goldberg’s contact names for each member.
The chat was set up by Waltz on Signal and discussed as U.S. strike against Yemen and the Houthis.
President Donald Trump has defended Waltz, arguing no classified information was shared.
Signal was used to exchange these chats, despite notifications of Signal’s vulnerability by the National Security Agency a month prior to the leaks.
This platform should not have been used for conversations concerning national security and war plans. These are discussions that should happen through either secure, professional ways of online communication or in person with the necessary personnel.
Adm. Christopher Grady, who is currently the top military advisor for Trump, was not included in the chat, despite the contents of the information being shared.
The chat detailed a strike against Yemen, laying out when to strike and where the target was located as well as the aircraft and weaponry used to in the assault against the Houthis. Hegseth wrote out the plan after the attack team was given the go.
In this chat, Vance and Hegseth talked negatively about European countries.
“I just hate bailing Europe out again,” Vance said.
“VP: I fully share your loathing of European free-loading,” Hegseth said. “It’s PATHETIC.”
After the success of the attack, officials used emojis, slang and abbreviations.
This is not the first time U.S. officials have had official information leaked. In 2016, while running for president, Hillary Clinton’s emails were hacked from her campaign chairman’s account.
The emails were released by WikiLeaks, and her email was used for government business.
According to a Newsweek poll, “A majority of Americans believe the recent leak of private Signal chat, where Trump administration officials inadvertently shared planned airstrikes on the Houthi militant group in Yemen with a reporter, is a more serious issue than former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of private email address to conduct government business.”
Hegseth was recently revealed to have also shared military attack plans with his wife Jennifer Rauchet, his brother Phil Hegseth and his personal lawyer Tim Parlatore. Some of his aids were also included into this second signal chat.
Since the news has been released, people are calling for Hegseth’s dismissal, despite Trump’s support.
Due to Hegseth’s unprofessional and possibly dangerous actions, he should be removed.
Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican, has also called for Hegseth’s dismissal.
“I had concerns from the get-go because Pete Hegseth didn’t have a lot of experience,” said Bacon to NBC News. “I like him on Fox, but does he have the experience to lead one of the largest organizations in the world? That’s a concern.”
