Additional Coverage:
Pentagon Watchdog Concludes Secretary Hegseth Jeopardized Classified Information via Signal
Washington D.C. – Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is facing scrutiny following a Pentagon Inspector General’s review which concluded he risked compromising sensitive military information by sharing details of an impending strike against Houthi rebels in Yemen through an unsecured messaging app. The findings, exclusively reported by CNN, stem from an incident earlier this year when a reporter was inadvertently added to a Signal group chat used by Department of Defense officials.
According to Zach Cohen of CNN, the Pentagon’s watchdog determined that Hegseth’s use of Signal, a messaging service, to disseminate information about an ongoing military operation could have endangered American troops and jeopardized mission objectives. “Some of these messages are so specific,” Cohen stated, citing one message from Hegseth that reportedly read, “This is the exact time the bombs will drop.”
The Inspector General, Steven Stebbins, has been investigating Hegseth’s communication practices for several months. The review reportedly aligns with conclusions drawn by other U.S. officials when the Signal thread was initially leaked. “Hegseth should not have been using Signal to communicate this sensitive information to other Trump officials,” Cohen emphasized, warning of “dire” potential consequences.
Furthermore, the Inspector General’s report allegedly found no documentation indicating that Hegseth declassified the information before sharing it in the group chat. This is a critical point, as Cohen noted, because “the information itself was from a document that was marked classified at the time.” The investigation is reportedly still seeking to determine if appropriate declassification procedures were followed.
Adding another layer to the investigation, Cohen revealed that Hegseth “apparently did not sit for an interview with the Inspector General.” Instead, the Secretary reportedly “resisted doing so” and provided written responses to the questions.
Following the initial leak of the messages, Hegseth defended his actions, stating, “Nobody is texting war plans. What was shared over Signal then and now, however you characterize it, was informal, unclassified coordinations, for media coordinations and other things.” When pressed on whether he would accept accountability if the Inspector General found he had placed classified information on Signal, Hegseth reportedly did not answer directly, instead stating he serves “at the pleasure of the president.”
President Donald Trump has consistently supported Hegseth, previously telling reporters, “Pete’s doing a great job. There’s no dysfunction.” The implications of the Inspector General’s findings and any potential next steps remain to be seen.