Trump officials leaked war plans in chat
Top Trump administration officials mistakenly disclosed war plans in a messaging group that included a journalist shortly before the United States attacked Yemen's Houthis, the White House has confirmed. The disclosure came after a first-hand account by The Atlantic.
Democratic lawmakers swiftly criticized the misstep, calling it a breach of U.S. national security and a violation of law that must be investigated by Congress. The Atlantic's editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported that he was unexpectedly invited to an encrypted chat group on the Signal messaging app called the "Houthi PC small group," where national security adviser Mike Waltz tasked his deputy Alex Wong with setting up a "tiger team" to coordinate U.S. action against the Houthis.
The National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes acknowledged that the chat group appeared to be authentic. Hours before the attacks began on March 15, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly posted operational details about the plan in the messaging group, including information about targets, weapons, and attack sequencing.
Goldberg's report stated that accounts representing Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, and senior National Security Council officials were assembled in the chat group. Trump's nominee for National Counterterrorism Center director, Joe Kent, was also apparently on the Signal chain despite not yet being Senate-confirmed.
President Trump told reporters that he was unaware of the incident, saying, "I don't know anything about it. I'm not a big fan of The Atlantic." However, a White House official later said that an investigation was underway and that Trump had been briefed on it.
The NSC's Hughes stated that the message thread appears to be authentic and that the administration is reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to the chain.
