A highly anticipated Department of Defense report has concluded that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated departmental policies by disclosing secret information in a Signal messaging chat, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included details about a scheduled air attack in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This chat was revealed after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other individuals in the chat allegedly included Senator JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The investigation did not examine the conduct of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Department of Defense.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not approved for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Troops
The inspector general's report found that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and could have endangered the safety of US troops if it had been obtained by a foreign enemy force.
However, the report also noted that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he actually did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth declined an interview by the investigators. Instead, he provided a brief written statement.
In his response, Hegseth asserted he only shared information that would not have endangered personnel or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to declassify material and viewed the investigation to be politically motivated.
Future Actions
The finalized investigation has been shared with lawmakers. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be made public in the coming days.
