Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during an event at the Pentagon on March 7, 2025. (Madelyn Keech/Defense Department)
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of the Signal group chat with other national security officials to discuss plans for airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen will be investigated, the Pentagon’s acting inspector general announced Thursday.
“The objective of this evaluation is to determine the extent to which the secretary of defense and other [Defense Department] personnel complied with DOD policies and procedures for the use of a commercial messaging application for official business,” acting Inspector General Steven Stebbins wrote. “Additionally, we will review compliance with classification and records retention requirements.”
Stebbins added the IG’s office could revise the objective of the evaluation as it proceeds. The evaluation will be performed in Washington and U.S. Central Command headquarters in Tampa.
The probe comes less than two weeks after the top editor of The Atlantic magazine, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed he was mistakenly included in the conversation on the Signal app in which national security officials for President Donald Trump discussed the plans for airstrikes in Yemen.
Hours before the bombing, Hegseth posted during the Signal chat when American fighter pilots would attack Houthi targets in Yemen, sharing information on the types of aircraft that would be used and the approximate times of launches and strikes. The chat also included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and other top officials. Waltz, a former Green Beret, accidentally invited Goldberg to the discussion.
The scandal has caused a furor on Capitol Hill, with Democrats increasingly calling for Hegseth’s resignation. Sens. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the Republican chairman and top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, made a formal request last week that the Defense Department’s inspector general assess whether anyone in the chat transferred classified information.
Members of Trump’s National Security Council, including Waltz, have also conducted government business over personal Gmail accounts, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. In addition, Waltz’s team set up at least 20 chats on Signal to coordinate official work on issues including Ukraine, China, Gaza, Middle East policy, Africa and Europe, Politico reported.
The IG investigation announced Thursday comes shortly after reports that the White House fired at least three senior aides on the National Security Council staff.
