Testifying before the Senate, Ratcliffe and Gabbard denied that the Signal chat—exposed by The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg on March 24—contained classified material.
“There were no classified or intelligence equities that were included in that chat group at any time,” Gabbard swore under oath.
Yet, when pressed on whether operational details of impending U.S. strikes on Iran-backed Houthi militants, allegedly sent by Hegseth, were sensitive, both deflected to the Pentagon chief.
“With respect to the assertions and the allegations that there was strike packages or targeting information or things that relate to DOD, as I pointed out, the Secretary of Defense is the original classification authority for determining whether something is classified or not, and as I’ve understood from media reports, the Secretary of Defense has said the information was not classified,” Ratcliffe stated.
When asked if such information ought to be classified, Gabbard echoed, “I defer to the Secretary of Defense and the National Security Council on that question.”
The Signal chat scandal
On March 24, it was reported that Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, was accidentally added to a Signal chat where senior officials from Trump’s administration discussed preparations for an attack on Yemeni Houthis.
Trump later claimed during a briefing that he “knew nothing” about the matter.
Meanwhile, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accused The Atlantic’s editor of “spreading fake news” and denied that U.S. military plans had been discussed in the chat.
However, the White House confirmed the chat’s authenticity.
“It appears to be a genuine message thread, and we are investigating how a number was accidentally added to it. This chain demonstrates deep and deliberate political coordination among senior officials,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes told CNN.
Politico speculated National Security Adviser Mike Waltz might face dismissal, though Fox News sources countered he’d stay put, with Waltz showing no intent to resign.
House Speaker Mike Johnson that day dismissed disciplinary action against Waltz or Hegseth, despite bipartisan calls for accountability over the leak of U.S. attack plans on the Houthis.