3 reasons ‘Signalgate’ is not going away                        

There’s nothing Washington likes better than a good, old-fashioned, juicy scandal. Ask Richard Nixon about “Watergate.” Ask George H.W. Bush about “Irangate.” Ask Bill Clinton about “Whitewatergate.” And, today, ask Donald Trump about “Signalgate.” 

Trump says it’s “not a big deal.” But it is. He complains that media coverage of Signalgate is “old and boring.” But it’s not. He wishes it would just go away. But it won’t. And the reason it won’t just go away is that it was so wrong, so dangerous and so stupid. 

At issue is the group chat Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth held on Signal, an encrypted but insecure app, to discuss plans for a U.S. military strike against Houthi rebels in Yemen. In that chat, two hours before launch, Hegseth revealed details of the attack to Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security advisor Mike Waltz, director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. Also on board was journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, mistakenly invited to join by Waltz. The result was what you might expect from a bunch of amateurs who have no experience in military leadership or national security.  

Here’s why it was so wrong. First, because you don’t discuss state secrets in commercial chatrooms. There are secure rooms — sensitive compartmental information facilities, or “SCIFS” — located in the White House, Pentagon, U.S. Capitol and federal agencies for just that purpose. Why weren’t they used, instead of Signal? 

Second, you don’t talk about going to war without having at least one senior, uniformed, member of the military on the call. Where was the acting chair of the Joint Chiefs? Or the secretary of the Air Force? Or the commanding general in the Red Sea area? Were they unavailable? Did they even know what Hegseth was up to? 

Here's why it was dangerous. As many current and former military leaders have noted, revealing details of a military strike hours before it happens gives a huge advantage to the enemy — giving them time to flee — and endangering the lives of American troops. As Barry McCaffrey, a retired four-star general, told MSNBC: “This was an egregious breach of security that put Navy combat flyers at risk.” The Wall Street Journal called it “security malpractice.” On BlueSky, former CIA operations officer John Sipher said the move "100% provides Moscow information on U.S. capabilities and personalities. Information they can use down the line or share with Iran — the Houthi enablers.”

And here’s why it was so stupid. Remember the old Washington adage: “It’s not the crime, it’s the cover-up?” It’s so true in this case. Signalgate might have quickly gone away if the Trump administration had simply admitted it made a mistake, apologized and fired — somebody. Instead, they made matters worse and kept the scandal alive by resorting to Donald Trump’s tired, old bag of tricks. 

First, Trump, Hegseth and others insisted the call contained no “classified information.” A ridiculous claim. If the targets, timings, type of fighter aircraft and weapons used in a military operation are not “classified,” what is? The Hegseth chat posed a direct threat to our national security. If a member of the military had leaked, or allowed to leak, this information, he would have been court-martialed. 

Then, in pure Trumpian fashion, the president launched a personal attack against Jeffrey Goldberg, calling him a “total sleazebag” and insisting The Atlantic was “failing” and would go out of business soon. Neither of which is true, much less relevant. And remember, Goldberg didn’t sneak onto the call, he was invited to join by Waltz. 

When that didn’t fly, Trump pulled the old “witch hunt” chestnut out of the fire, suggesting he was once again the “victim” of some Democrat-inspired media storm. But few bought that, either. Because the evidence is too clear. Nobody inflicted Signalgate on the Trump administration. They brought it on themselves. It’s an embarrassing breach of national security followed by a ham-handed, amateur-hour cover-up. 

Now here’s the worst part. Any other time, under any other administration, cries of outrage would be heard from Capitol Hill. Multiple congressional hearings would have already been scheduled, coupled with demands for a presidential apology and a list of heads that must roll. 

But not this time. Afraid to voice any criticism of Trump, GOP leaders have remained largely silent; many have been supportive. Which means that it’s likely nobody will be held responsible for Signalgate. The only lesson learned is that, under Trump, you can share national security secrets with impunity.  

Bill Press is host of “The Bill Press Pod.” He is the author of “From the Left: A Life in the Crossfire.” Follow him on BlueSky @BillPress.bsky.social.