President Donald Trump confirmed that the responsible for the Signal group chat leak was a staffer from National Security Advisor Mike Waltz’s office who added The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, to a group chat where senior officials were discussing an upcoming strike on Houthi rebels in Yemen.
“It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there,” Trump told NBC in a phone interview, explaining how Goldberg was included in the sensitive chat.
Despite the error, Trump insisted Goldberg’s presence had “no impact at all” on the military operation.
On Monday, Goldberg published an article detailing how he was unexpectedly added to a Signal group chat on March 11. The chat, reportedly called “Houthi PC Small Group,” included high-ranking government officials such as Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Vice President JD Vance.
Signal, an encrypted messaging app, is designed for secure communication, but Goldberg’s accidental inclusion raised concerns about operational security.
According to Goldberg, the chat participants discussed plans for striking the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, including the timing of the attacks.
“According to the lengthy Hegseth text, the first detonations in Yemen would be felt two hours hence, at 1:45 p.m. Eastern time,” Goldberg wrote in his firsthand account. “So I waited in my car in a supermarket parking lot. If this Signal chat was real, I reasoned, Houthi targets would soon be bombed. At about 1:55, I checked X and searched Yemen. Explosions were then being heard across Sanaa, the capital city.”
The accidental leak has sparked backlash from Democratic lawmakers, with some calling for the resignations of Waltz and Hegseth. Others have demanded a congressional inquiry into how the journalist was added to a high-level security discussion.
Trump, however, stood by Waltz, downplaying the incident. “Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man,” Trump told NBC.
Speaking separately to Fox News, Trump confirmed that Waltz would not be fired. “He’s not getting fired,” Trump stated. He acknowledged the situation as a “mistake” but emphasized that “nothing important” was shared in the Signal chat.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung dismissed the controversy, calling it “nothing more than a section of the NatSec establishment community running the same, tired gameplay from years past.”
“From the ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ hoax of the first term to the fake documents case of the last four years… at every turn, anti-Trump forces have tried to weaponize innocuous actions and turn them into faux outrage that Fake News outlets can use to peddle misinformation,” Cheung posted on X.
RECENT STORIES:
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also defended the administration, stating that no classified material was shared in the group chat. “Jeffrey Goldberg is well-known for his sensationalist spin. Here are the facts about his latest story,” Leavitt posted on X.
She added that the White House Counsel’s Office had provided guidance on secure communication methods for top officials and that the National Security Council was investigating how Goldberg’s number was added. “Thanks to the strong and decisive leadership of President Trump, and everyone in the group, the Houthi strikes were successful and effective. Terrorists were killed, and that’s what matters most to President Trump,” Leavitt concluded.
Despite the controversy, Trump and his administration remain firm in their stance that the incident was an unfortunate but inconsequential mistake.