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March 25, 2025

Hegseth and Rubio caught discussing classified matters on Signal app

The Washington Post
NPR
Defensescoop
Deadline
Al Jazeera English
+5

Private messages reveal inappropriate discussions about classified government matters

On Mar. 25, 2025, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz accidentally added Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg to a Signal group chat where participants discussed Operation Rough Rider, the Yemen military operation against the Houthis (Daily Beast; Fox News; Wikipedia)

The Atlantic and Washington Post reported that the Signal group chat listed 18 participants, including Vice President JD Vance, Cabinet secretaries, and intelligence directors (Fox News; Washington Post; TIME)

American Oversight filed suit alleging that using Signal to discuss active military operations without preserving records violated the Federal Records Act (Daily Beast; DefenseScoop; Wikipedia)

Defense Secretary Pete HegsethPete Hegseth’s messages included a timeline marking 1345 ET as the 'Trigger Based' F-18 first strike window and 1410 ET for the second F-18 strike package (Al Jazeera; Washington Post; Wikipedia)

Senators Roger Wicker and Jack Reed requested a Pentagon Inspector General investigation into whether classified information was shared over unclassified networks (DefenseScoop; NPR; Wikipedia)

šŸ›”ļøNational SecurityšŸ“œConstitutional Law

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What you can do

1

Review the Federal Records Act’s record-keeping requirements (44 U.S.C. § 3101–3107) on the Government Publishing Office site at https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/uscode/2011/title44 to understand legal obligations for preserving government communications

2

Track the Pentagon Inspector General’s investigation by subscribing to public reports on the DoD Office of Inspector General website at https://www.dodig.mil/Reports

3

Verify official statements on the Signal chat authenticity by reading National Security Council press briefings at the White House Briefing Room: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings