US President Donald Trump has broken his silence in defense of the US adviser who mistakenly added a journalist to a group chat discussing attacks on Yemen. He sent a public message to National Security Adviser Mike Waltz amid calls for him to step down after adding the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine, Jeffery Goldberg, to the messaging app Signal.
Just hours after the leak scandal was revealed, Trump told NBC news that Waltz has « learned a lesson, » and disregarded that the leak had any impact. He blamed the error on staff, and said: « Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man. » Trump dismissed the story, saying it had « no impact at all » and the attacks were « perfectly successful », adding that it was « the only glitch in two months, and it turned out not to be a serious one ».
Waltz created the chat called ‘Houthi PC small group’ to coordinate strikes ordered by Trump against the Houthis in Yemen as a warning to Tehran. It included Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance and US officials.
In the viral article, Goldberg wrote that a message by Hegseth contained operational details of upcoming strikes, including information about targets, weapons the US would deploy, and attack sequencing.
He added that he withheld information because it « could conceivably have been used to harm American military and intelligence personnel ».
An anonymous official slammed the leak to Politico: « Everyone in the White House can agree on one thing: Mike Waltz is a f***ing idiot,’ the source, identified as a ‘person close to the White House.
« 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 advisor. »
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt criticised « anonymous sources » for coming out against Waltz on X: »As I said yesterday, the President continues to have confidence in his national security team, including Mike Waltz.
« Stories claiming otherwise are driven by anonymous sources who clearly do not speak to the President, and written by reporters who are thirsty for a ‘scoop’. »
Goldberg initially believed he was added to the group as part of a « disinformation operation, » but quickly realised it was official.
When asked how he was added to the chat, the US president explained: « It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there. »
A spokesperson for the National Security Council said: « This appears to be an authentic message chain, and we are reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to the chain.
« The thread is a demonstration of the deep and thoughtful policy coordination between senior officials. The ongoing success of the Houthi operation demonstrates that there were no threats to troops or national security. »
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