Pete Hegseth vehemently denied allegations that he was "texting war plans" in a group chat discussing military strikes in Yemen, which a journalist was mistakenly included in. Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, made the shocking revelation on Monday that he was mistakenly added to a group chat where Trump's aides were discussing war plans.
The conversation took place on Signal, a secure messaging app, and was initiated by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz. The chat included Trump's top officials including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. However, Goldberg didn't share the details that were shared.
Hegseth Breaks His Silence
Hegseth dismissed the claims, telling reporters in Hawaii, "Nobody was texting war plans, and that's all I have to say about that," when questioned about The Atlantic's report exposing a shocking national security breach involving senior officials in the Trump administration.
Goldberg was added to the Signal group on March 11, several days before the Yemen strikes took place on March 15.
The group also reportedly included a CIA representative, Trump adviser Stephen Miller, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
Hegseth slammed Goldberg in a manner similar to how President Donald Trump has condemned The Atlantic. "So you are talking about a deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist who has made a profession of peddling hoaxes, time and time again."
He cited several stories published by The Atlantic, including reports on Trump's alleged ties to Russia, the misrepresentation of his "very fine people" remark after the Charlottesville riots, and claims that he called fallen soldiers "suckers and losers."
"This is a guy who peddles in garbage. This is what he does," Hegseth added.
He praised American forces battling the Houthis in Yemen while also condemning the Biden administration for its handling of the situation. A reporter asked Hegseth: "Why were those details shared on signal?"
Hegseth replied: "I've heard how it was characterized. Nobody was texting war plans and that's all I have to say about that."
Shocking Claims Debunked
Goldberg said that he was added to a Signal group named "Houthi PC small group" two days after connecting with Waltz on the app. The editor-in-chief accused Hegseth of being untruthful during an interview with CNN host Kaitlin Collins on Monday night.
"No, that's a lie," the journalist said of Hegseth's remarks. "He was texting war plans. He was texting attack plans. When targets were going to be targeted; how they were going to be targeted; who was at the targets; when the next sequence of attacks was happening."
"I'm sitting in a Safeway parking lot, watching my phone and realizing, 'Oh my God, this might be real. I think Pete Hegseth just sent this group actual targeting information, actual sequencing of an attack,'" Goldberg added.
Meanwhile, Waltz, a former Republican congressman from Florida, is reportedly at risk of losing his job due to the incident.
"It was reckless not to check who was on the thread. It was reckless to be having that conversation on Signal. You can't have recklessness as the national security adviser," a senior Trump administration official told Politico.
The official said that discussions are still taking place among staff members regarding the next steps for Waltz.
"Half of them saying he's never going to survive or shouldn't survive," the official told the outlet.
