Trump team's intel breach sparks outrage
After a Trump official mistakenly added a journalist to a Signal chat about U.S. strikes on Yemen, Democrats are demanding investigations into what they call a serious national security breach.
A senior Trump administration official mistakenly added The Atlantic’s Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a Signal group chat in which senior cabinet officials discussed forthcoming U.S. military strikes on Yemen, including sensitive operational details—an extraordinary breach that the White House has downplayed but that national security lawyers say may violate federal law.
Allow me to explain: Trump’s allies have largely dismissed the breach, arguing that the mission's success proves that Goldberg’s access to the Signal thread—which he reported on today—was ultimately inconsequential.
The episode highlights a familiar double standard: Some of the same officials now brushing off the disclosure once excoriated Hillary Clinton for using a private email server and accused former President Joe Biden of mishandling classified documents from his vice presidency.
Unlike those cases, this lapse unfolded inside a sitting administration led by a president who has repeatedly shown open contempt for intelligence protocols and institutional guardrails.
It’s not just hypocrisy—it’s a window into the normalization of chaos. What might have ended careers in past administrations barely merits an apology in this one.
The mishap isn’t a shocking aberration—it’s an extension of Trump’s long-running indifference (or outright hostility) to norms regarding intelligence and classified information.
From waving around maps at Bedminster to allegedly showing off war plans to donors and guests, he’s modeled a culture where secrecy is performative, not protective. So, of course, his staff treats it casually—it’s learned behavior.
The episode would be stunning in any administration. In Trump’s second term, it feels like business as usual. The snake, after all, rots from the head.
What they are saying: Democrats aren’t letting it slide. In a floor speech Monday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) demanded a full and thorough investigation into the matter.
“If our nation’s military secrets are being peddled around over unsecure text chains, we need to know at once and we need to put a stop to it immediately,” Schumer added.
House Democrats are also pushing for answers.
Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, called on Chairman Brian Mast to hold a public hearing into what he called “the most astonishing breach of our national security in recent history.”
Meeks accused Republicans of spending years chasing “contrived security ‘scandals’” while ignoring real breaches under their own party’s leadership.
“This administration proves yet again that hypocrisy and cynical politics aren’t the only defining characteristics of today’s GOP; rank incompetence is front and center.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) echoed that concern.
Who are some of these people that Donald Trump has put into the most sensitive national security positions in America? We were promised that Donald Trump was going to hire the very best,” he told reporters. “This whole Trump administration is filled with lackeys and incompetent cronies.”
In the know: The messages, which included timing, targeting, and weapons deployment details, unfolded in real time as the U.S. prepared to launch the operation.
Goldberg remained in the Signal thread for more than 24 hours—unnoticed by officials, including the vice president, defense secretary and CIA director—until he voluntarily removed himself.
National security experts say the episode may constitute an unauthorized transmission of national defense information and a potential violation of records laws, given that the officials were using an unapproved platform and set messages to disappear.
Looking ahead: Rep. Jim Himes (Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, is scheduled to deliver a presentation during tomorrow morning’s closed-door caucus meeting.
I’m told he was already scheduled to present, but it’s reasonable to expect the intel breach will come up during the session.
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