US officials share war plans with journalist in group chat

Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a Signal conversation about striking Yemen

National security adviser Michale Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
National security adviser Michael Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
(Image credit: Andrew Harnik / Getty Images)

What happened

A group of top Trump administration officials, including Vice President J.D. Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, discussed detailed operational plans on striking Yemen in a group text conversation on Signal, Jeffrey Goldberg said at The Atlantic Monday.

Who said what

The White House is "reviewing how an inadvertent number was added" to what "appears to be an authentic message chain," National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said. "I don't know anything about it," President Donald Trump told reporters. "You're telling me about it for the first time."

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Hegseth criticized Goldberg and insisted that "nobody was texting war plans." Hegesth "can say that it wasn't a war plan," Goldberg replied on MSNBC, "but it was a minute-by-minute accounting of what was about to happen," including "precise details" like targets and weapons.

Discussing "sensitive war plans" on a "publicly available encrypted messaging service" was an "extraordinary" and "mind-boggling security breach" that highlighted the Trump team's "lax handling of America's secrets," Axios said. "Well, somebody f--ked up," said Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.). "Heads should roll," Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.) told Axios.

What next?

Goldberg's revelations "triggered furious discussion inside the White House" that Waltz "may need to be forced out," Politico said, though Trump will "ultimately make the decision" as he "watches coverage of the embarrassing episode." Two people on the chat, Director of National Security Tulsi Gabbard and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, will face questions on the breach when they appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee Tuesday and House Intelligence Committee Wednesday.

Rafi Schwartz, The Week US

Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.