Defense Department Investigation Finds Defense Secretary Put Troops in Jeopardy with Signal Chat.
A long-awaited Pentagon review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by sharing classified information in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Incident
The chat group in dispute contained details about a planned airstrike in Yemen targeting Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a reporter for the Atlantic was included as a member.
Other officials in the chat allegedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Potential Threat to Forces
The internal investigation found that the information shared by Hegseth was classified and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been obtained by a hostile nation.
Notably, the document acknowledged that Hegseth possessed the authority to downgrade the material he shared, though it was not specified whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source said that Hegseth declined an interview by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a short written response.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only disclosed details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The completed report has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is anticipated to be released later this week.
