Hegseth Comments On Text Message Group Report
Let’s set the scene. A U.S. military plane touches down in Hawaii, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth steps onto the tarmac, and reporters are waiting—not to ask about Pacific strategy or joint drills with allies, but about a group chat. That’s right—a group chat. Because in 2025, that’s apparently where global headlines are born.
The Atlantic dropped a bombshell Monday morning, claiming that Hegseth—President Trump’s Defense Secretary and longtime ally—accidentally shared sensitive military details about strikes in Yemen in an encrypted Signal chat. The twist? According to Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, he was in the chat too. Not exactly the kind of contact you’d expect when planning kinetic operations in the Middle East.
. @SecDef response to the @TheAtlantic article….
“You’re talking about a deceitful and highly discredited “so-called journalist” pic.twitter.com/pLtcUF4ZtN
— DOD Rapid Response (@DODResponse) March 24, 2025
Goldberg says the plan included specifics—targets, weapon systems, and timing. All, allegedly, typed out by Hegseth just hours before the U.S. struck Houthi positions in retaliation for attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea. His accusation? If adversaries had seen the message, American lives could have been at risk. A serious claim—if it’s true.
But Hegseth, never one to mince words or dodge a fight, didn’t flinch. “Nobody was texting war plans,” he told a reporter bluntly. That’s it. Full stop. He chalked the whole thing up to yet another manufactured scandal from a publication that’s become a go-to for Trumpworld’s critics.
And then came the counterpunch.
Hegseth dismissed Goldberg as “a deceitful and highly discredited, so-called journalist,” listing off a highlight reel of stories The Atlantic has published that Team Trump has long claimed were fabricated or grossly distorted—“Russia, Russia, Russia,” the “fine people” hoax, the “suckers and losers” controversy. All hits from the same songbook. “This is the guy that peddles in garbage,” Hegseth snapped. “This is what he does.”
Now, beyond the media brawl, let’s not lose sight of the actual stakes here. The United States is in the middle of a military campaign against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels—an aggressive move from President Trump that’s aimed at restoring deterrence in a region where American power was seen as eroding under prior administrations. Hegseth made that much clear: U.S. sailors were under fire. Freedom of navigation in the Red Sea was collapsing. Trump responded decisively.
And that part? That’s not in dispute. The strikes did happen. They were targeted. And they were carried out with precision. “We will ultimately decimate the Houthis,” Hegseth said, praising both the president’s leadership and the professionalism of U.S. forces.