Top Trump officials accidentally shared war plans with media

The IbanezerScrooge said:

buttery males? worse? smh

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He also said that Hegseth assured chat participants that “we are currently clean on OPSEC” despite the accidental inclusion of a journalist in the conversation, and the use of an outside-of-government platform.

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JosephZ said:

Senior national security officials coordinated airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen earlier this month using an unsecure group chat which accidentally included the top editor of The Atlantic, a move that appears to have broken a host of federal laws and protocols.

In a story released Monday titled “The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans,” Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg said he was added to the group on Signal — an open-source, privacy-focused messaging app — earlier this month by someone identifying themself as Michael Waltz, President Donald Trump’s national security adviser.

The conversation — which eventually included messages from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, among others — included “operational details of forthcoming strikes on Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” according to Goldberg.

“The information contained in them, if they had been read by an adversary of the United States, could conceivably have been used to harm American military and intelligence personnel, particularly in the broader Middle East, Central Command’s area of responsibility,” Goldberg wrote.

In a statement National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said that “the message thread that was reported appears to be authentic, and we are reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to the chain.”

Top Trump officials accidentally shared war plans with media

Hegseth reportedly assured chat participants that “we are currently clean on OPSEC” despite the accidental inclusion of a journalist.

www.militarytimes.com

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civilwarbuff said:

Something tells me someone is going to be looking for a new job REAL SOON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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civilwarbuff said:

Something tells me someone is going to be looking for a new job REAL SOON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Hans Blaster said:

If Waltz does get fired it'll be before his replacement is elected to Congress (next Tuesday) and he'll also be the first to complete the Trump HR cycle this term.

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Akita Suggagaki said:

It will take some republicans to stand up and say, "enough!"

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Desk trauma said:

Then it’s not going to happen.

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Akita Suggagaki said:

It does not inspire confidence. I think we are witnessing national decline across many dimensions, especially among allies.
But also scientific research and civil rights.
It will take some republicans to stand up and say, "enough!"

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JosephZ said:

The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans

The account labeled “JD Vance” responded at 8:16: “Team, I am out for the day doing an economic event in Michigan. But I think we are making a mistake... There is a real risk that the public doesn’t understand this or why it’s necessary. The strongest reason to do this is, as POTUS said, to send a message... I am not sure the president is aware how inconsistent this is with his message on Europe right now. There’s a further risk that we see a moderate to severe spike in oil prices. I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself. But there is a strong argument for delaying this a month, doing the messaging work on why this matters, seeing where the economy is, etc.”

At 8:27, a message arrived from the “Pete Hegseth” account. “VP: I understand your concerns – and fully support you raising w/ POTUS. Important considerations, most of which are tough to know how they play out (economy, Ukraine peace, Gaza, etc). I think messaging is going to be tough no matter what – nobody knows who the Houthis are – which is why we would need to stay focused on: 1) Biden failed & 2) Iran funded... Waiting a few weeks or a month does not fundamentally change the calculus. 2 immediate risks on waiting: 1) this leaks, and we look indecisive; 2) Israel takes an action first – or Gaza cease fire falls apart – and we don’t get to start this on our own terms. We can manage both. We are prepared to execute, and if I had final go or no go vote, I believe we should. This [is] not about the Houthis. I see it as two things: 1) Restoring Freedom of Navigation, a core national interest; and 2) Reestablish deterrence, which Biden cratered. But, we can easily pause. And if we do, I will do all we can to enforce 100% OPSEC”—operations security. “I welcome other thoughts.”

A few minutes later, the “Michael Waltz” account posted a lengthy note about trade figures, and the limited capabilities of European navies. “Whether it’s now or several weeks from now, it will have to be the United States that reopens these shipping lanes. Per the president’s request we are working with DOD and State to determine how to compile the cost associated and levy them on the Europeans.”

The account identified as “JD Vance” addressed a message at 8:45 to Pete Hegseth: “if you think we should do it let’s go. I just hate bailing Europe out again.”

The user identified as Hegseth responded three minutes later: “VP: I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC. But Mike is correct, we are the only ones on the planet (on our side of the ledger) who can do this. Nobody else even close. Question is timing. I feel like now is as good a time as any, given POTUS directive to reopen shipping lanes. I think we should go; but POTUS still retains 24 hours of decision space.”

At this point, the previously silent “S M” joined the conversation. “As I heard it, the president was clear: green light, but we soon make clear to Egypt and Europe what we expect in return. We also need to figure out how to enforce such a requirement. EG, if Europe doesn’t remunerate, then what? If the US successfully restores freedom of navigation at great cost there needs to be some further economic gain extracted in return.”

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Desk trauma said:

Making amateur hour look good.

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