Trump dismisses Yemen chat leak as ‘glitch’, says top aide has ‘learned a lesson’ | World News
US President Donald Trump has downplayed the accidental inclusion of a journal in a high-level group chat about Yemen air strikes, calling it a “glitch” and standing his senior national security officials despite growing scrutiny.
The controversy erupted after The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed he had inadvertently been added to a Signal group chat where top officials, including Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, were discussing planned air strikes on Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
In a phone interview with NBC, Trump dismissed concerns over the leak, stating, “It was the only glitch in two months, and it turned out not to be a serious one.” He defended Waltz, saying, “He’s learned a lesson, and he’s a good man.”
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Goldberg claimed he received a Signal connection request from someone appearing to be Waltz, but Trump clarified, “It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later posted on X that there were no discussions of “war plans” and “no classified material was sent to the thread.”
The clarification from Trump came after reports claiming that the Republican may remove Waltz from his position.
“Half of them are saying he’s never going to survive or shouldn’t survive,” a senior adminration official told Politico, referencing discussions among White House staffers about whether Waltz should remain in his position.Story continues below this ad
The report further stated that two senior aides had suggested Waltz should step down to avoid placing Trump in a “bad position.”
However, Trump earlier danced himself from the controversy, telling reporters he was unaware that classified information had been shared.
“I don’t know anything about it. I’m not a big fan of The Atlantic. To me, it’s a magazine that’s going out of business. I think it’s not much of a magazine but I know nothing about it,” Trump said. “You’re saying that they had what?”
When a reporter clarified that the messages had been sent via Signal, Trump cut in, asking, “Having to do with what? What were they talking about?”
Donald Trump responds to the explosive Atlantic report about his cabinet members accidentally adding a reporter to a chat where they discussed top-secret war plans:
“I don’t know anything about it. I’m not a big fan of The Atlantic. To me, it’s a magazine that’s going out of… pic.twitter.com/qMVuFrv0hR
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) March 24, 2025
Despite this, top Democrats have called for a formal investigation, arguing that the breach could have been illegal and raising concerns about the use of public messaging apps for sensitive military discussions.Story continues below this ad
Trump had publicly announced the Yemen strikes on March 15, but Goldberg reported being added to the chat two days earlier, where he received messages from senior officials identifying key figures in the operation.
While the leak had the potential to cause significant damage, Goldberg ultimately chose not to disclose classified details.
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