Hegseth’s Signal chat put troops in peril, probe finds
The defense secretary risked the lives of military personnel and violated Pentagon rules, says new report
What happened
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth risked the lives of military personnel when he disclosed highly sensitive information about a pending military strike in Signal group chats in March, the Pentagon inspector general found in a classified report shared with Congress Wednesday, according to lawmakers and multiple news organizations. Hegseth violated Pentagon rules, the watchdog reportedly found, but it could not be determined if he improperly shared classified information, since the defense secretary can unilaterally declassify such material.
Who said what
“No classified information. Total exoneration. Case closed,” Hegseth said on social media. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) said the “objective, evidence-based” inquiry “leaves no doubt” that Hegseth “endangered the lives of American pilots” and “created unacceptable risks” to their mission by “sharing classified operational details on an unsecure group chat.” Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, called the report a “damning review of an incompetent secretary of defense who is profoundly incapable of the job.”
The report’s release “comes at a delicate time for the former Fox News host, as scrutiny intensifies of his leadership,” especially over potentially illegal strikes on alleged drug traffickers, Reuters said. “Hegseth and his inner circle have been bracing for months” for the report’s release, hoping it “would mark the final chapter” of this “prolonged political headache,” CNN said. But instead, it could “compound existing concerns voiced by lawmakers from both sides of the aisle about Hegseth’s judgment.”
What next?
President Donald Trump “stands by” Hegseth, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday. An unclassified, redacted version of the inspector general’s report was expected to be released publicly today.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
How the FCC’s ‘equal time’ rule worksIn the Spotlight The law is at the heart of the Colbert-CBS conflict
-
What is the endgame in the DHS shutdown?Today’s Big Question Democrats want to rein in ICE’s immigration crackdown
-
‘Poor time management isn’t just an inconvenience’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Witkoff and Kushner tackle Ukraine, Iran in GenevaSpeed Read Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held negotiations aimed at securing a nuclear deal with Iran and an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine
-
Pentagon spokesperson forced out as DHS’s resignsSpeed Read Senior military adviser Col. David Butler was fired by Pete Hegseth and Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin is resigning
-
Judge orders Washington slavery exhibit restoredSpeed Read The Trump administration took down displays about slavery at the President’s House Site in Philadelphia
-
Hyatt chair joins growing list of Epstein files losersSpeed Read Thomas Pritzker stepped down as executive chair of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation over his ties with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
-
Judge blocks Hegseth from punishing Kelly over videoSpeed Read Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed for the senator to be demoted over a video in which he reminds military officials they should refuse illegal orders
-
Trump’s EPA kills legal basis for federal climate policySpeed Read The government’s authority to regulate several planet-warming pollutants has been repealed
-
House votes to end Trump’s Canada tariffsSpeed Read Six Republicans joined with Democrats to repeal the president’s tariffs
-
Bondi, Democrats clash over Epstein in hearingSpeed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi ignored survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and demanded that Democrats apologize to Trump
