The White House found itself in turmoil Monday following revelations that senior Trump administration officials inadvertently exposed classified war plans against the Houthis to a journalist in a private chat group. Sources within the White House told Politico that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz's position may be in jeopardy as a result of this significant security breach.
On Monday, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor of The Atlantic, revealed that Waltz had mistakenly added him to a sensitive Signal messaging group where administration officials were sharing detailed military plans targeting Houthi forces. The group included high-ranking officials such as Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The incident represents not just an embarrassing misstep but a potentially serious national security failure.
Internal pressure mounting for resignation
"Everyone in the White House agrees on one thing: Mike Waltz is a f***ing idiot," a source close to the White House told Politico. A senior administration official disclosed that discussions are already taking place among various officials regarding Waltz's future. "Half of them are saying he won't survive or that he shouldn't survive," the senior official stated. Two high-level White House aides have suggested that Waltz should voluntarily step down to shield President Donald Trump from a politically damaging situation.
A fourth White House source confirmed awareness of internal pressure on Waltz to take responsibility for his error, potentially through resignation. However, this source emphasized that Waltz's fate ultimately hinges on President Trump's personal assessment of the situation, while also noting that other senior officials were participants in the compromised Signal chat.
Blame game developing
Two sources indicated that while Trump might hold Waltz accountable for potentially compromising US security, the president could equally direct his frustration toward Vice President Vance for diverging from administration foreign policy positions in the chat group, or toward Secretary Hegseth for allegedly sharing sensitive operational details.
"It was negligent not to verify who was included in the group. It was negligent to conduct such sensitive discussions on Signal. The National Security Advisor simply cannot afford to be negligent," the senior administration official emphasized.
Mixed signals on Waltz's future
Despite the growing pressure, House Speaker Mike Johnson has publicly defended Waltz, telling Politico that he "absolutely should not" resign. "He possesses exceptional qualifications for the position. He is trustworthy and reliable. He was born for this role, and I have complete confidence in him," Johnson stated.
The White House continues to officially stand behind the National Security Advisor. "As President Trump has noted, the operations against the Houthis have been highly successful and effective. President Trump maintains full confidence in his national security team, including National Security Advisor Mike Waltz," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declared in an official statement.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has firmly denied exposing military plans, despite the White House confirming the authenticity of the Signal group. Hegseth blasted Goldberg as a "highly discredited" reporter who "peddles in garbage" and insisted that "nobody was texting war plans."
Contradicting accounts of the breach
When asked about Hegseth's denial during an appearance on CNN's The Source with Kaitlan Collins on Monday night, Goldberg directly challenged the defense secretary's account, stating: "No, that's a lie. He was texting war plans. He was texting attack plans."
Information security controversies are familiar territory for Trump. Beyond the case involving classified documents stored at his Mar-a-Lago estate, Trump leveraged considerable political advantage during his 2016 presidential campaign against Hillary Clinton by attacking her over what became known as the "email scandal" – a controversy stemming from her use of a private server for official correspondence while serving as Secretary of State, including some communications containing classified materials.
Clinton seized the opportunity to highlight the apparent hypocrisy, quickly responding to the current scandal with a social media post stating: "You've got to be kidding me," accompanied by a link to Goldberg's article.
