Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth defended himself Tuesday amid controversy surrounding a Sign group by which he and different prime Trump administration members mentioned an assault on Yemen — and mistakenly added a journalist to the chat.
“Nobody’s texting war plans. … I know exactly what I’m doing, exactly what we’re directing, and I’m really proud of what we accomplished,” Hegseth stated Tuesday whereas in Hawaii.
Hegseth’s Tuesday feedback mirror these from Monday, when he stated nobody “was texting war plans, and that’s all I have to say about that.”
The Atlantic revealed a report Monday by its editor in chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, by which he detailed his time within the Sign chat after being added to it. The report rattled Washington, and fears round nationwide safety rose in its wake.
On Wednesday, The Atlantic revealed the messages within the Sign group chat that Goldberg inadvertently gained entry to. The messages present Hegseth sending particulars in regards to the Yemen assault, together with the strike’s particular timeline and the weapons used, forward of it being carried out.
Goldberg straight refuted Hegseth’s Monday feedback in an interview that night time with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.
“That’s a lie. He was texting war plans,” Goldberg advised Collins. “He was texting attack plans. When targets were going to be targeted; how they were going to be targeted; who was at the targets; when the next sequence of attacks was happening.”
Hegseth stated Tuesday that “the strikes against the Houthis that night were devastatingly effective, and I’m incredibly proud of the courage and skill of the troops.”
“And they are ongoing and continue to be devastatingly effective,” he added.
