Government officials are supposed to keep national security secrets safe. But in Trump’s administration, some of them sent U.S. military plans in a group chat—and not just any group chat—one that included a journalist.
According to The Atlantic, top Trump officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, shared details of upcoming U.S. airstrikes in Yemen in a Signal messaging app group chat. The group accidentally included Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic.
That means a journalist got war plans before the airstrikes even happened. And just two hours after Goldberg saw the messages, the U.S. military launched airstrikes in Yemen.
The National Security Council (NSC) confirmed that the messages appear authentic and are now investigating how a journalist got added to the chat.
This was no small mistake. The messages included details about the targets, weapons, and attack strategy for U.S. airstrikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen. Typically, this kind of information is highly protected because it can put American troops in danger if it gets leaked.
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It’s still unclear if the information was classified, but at the very least, it was sensitive military data that should not have been shared over an unprotected app.
When asked about the leak, Trump acted surprised and denied knowing anything about it.
“I don’t know anything about it. You’re telling me about it for the first time,” Trump told reporters. He then took a swipe at the magazine, saying, “The Atlantic is not much of a magazine.”
BREAKING: In a stunning moment, Donald Trump admits that he has no idea what his own administration is up to, when asked about the major lapse in security when war plans were accidentally shared over Signal with a reporter.
Make sure everyone sees this.pic.twitter.com/Jy4IKgT8EV
— Really American 🇺🇸 (@ReallyAmerican1) March 24, 2025
That was it. There was no explanation, and there was no concern about how this happened. It was just a quick insult and a dismissal.
Signal is a popular messaging app known for its strong encryption. Many people, including government officials, use it for secure communication. However, Signal is not classified. That means it can be hacked and should never be used for highly sensitive information like war plans.
Even in the Biden administration, some officials were allowed to use Signal only for minor things like scheduling meetings. A former national security official said it was used for “tippers“—quick messages to tell someone to check their classified inbox, not to send actual classified details.
After this embarrassing leak, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office announced a crackdown on leaks. His team is considering using polygraph tests (lie detectors) on staff to find out who is leaking information to reporters.
But that raises another question—why was Hegseth sharing war plans in an unsecured chat?
The Espionage Act strictly controls how national security information is handled. Under this law, even if someone doesn’t mean to leak classified information, they can still be charged if they were careless in handling it.
This same law was central to the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s emails. When Clinton used a private email server for work messages, the FBI investigated whether classified information was sent improperly. Ultimately, they found no intent to break the law and did not press charges.
But this situation? It involves actual war plans being shared in an unprotected chat.
This is a huge mistake that makes Trump’s national security team look reckless and careless. If U.S. war plans can accidentally end up in the hands of a journalist, what else is slipping through the cracks?
Featured image via Screengrab
