A highly anticipated Department of Defense review has concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by sharing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, as stated by a person briefed on the findings.
Particulars of the Event
The chat group in dispute contained particulars about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a member.
Other individuals in the chat reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and then-national security adviser Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other officials are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for transmitting classified information.
Potential Threat to Troops
The internal investigation found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was classified and could have endangered the lives of US troops if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
Notably, the report acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to downgrade the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually exercised that authority.
Hegseth's Reaction
The informed individual indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the investigators. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have endangered personnel or compromised the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the inspector general to be partisan.
Future Actions
The completed report has been provided to lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public later this week.
