Who was on the Signal group chat with Pete Hegseth? Gabbard and Ratcliffe face Senate heat

On Monday, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, published an exposé claiming he was unintentionally added to the “Houthi PC small group” chat, where Trump administration officials discussed war plans.

According to the Associated Press, Goldberg received the Signal invitation from Michael Waltz, Trump’s national security adviser, who was also a participant in the discussion.

Who was in the group chat?

The chat included key Trump administration figures:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

Vice President JD Vance

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard

National Security Adviser Michael Waltz

CIA Director John Ratcliffe

“MAR,” presumed by Goldberg to be Secretary of State Marco Rubio

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles

“SM,” believed by Goldberg to be Stephen Miller, White House Deputy Chief of Staff

Joe Kent, Trump’s nominee to lead the National Counterterrorism Center

U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent

CBS News reported that the group chat comprised 18 members in total, though not all identities were publicly disclosed.

Also Read: Hillary Clinton’s savage dig at Trump admin over war plans scandal backfires; ‘Old enough to remember…’

Pete Hegseth’s Response

Upon arriving at the Pearl Harbor military base in Hawaii, Hegseth faced questions from a Fox News reporter, “Can you share how your information about war plans against the Houthis in Yemen were shared with a journalist from The Atlantic and were those details classified?”

Hegseth retorted sharply, “You’re talking about a deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist whose made a profession of peddling hoaxes time and time again. To include the, I don’t know, the hopes of Russia, Russia, Russia, or the fine people on both sides hoaxes or suckers and losers hoaxes.”

He continued his attack on Goldberg, “This is the guy that peddles in garbage. This is what he does.”

When pressed on why sensitive information was shared via Signal and how a journalist gained access, Hegseth, “I’ve heard I was characterized. Nobody was texting war plans. And that’s all I have to say about that.”

Trump’s response –

On Monday afternoon, President Donald Trump addressed reporters, saying he was not aware of the article.

“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,” Trump said.

Denials from Gabbard and Ratcliffe –

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee, asserting, “There were no classified or intelligence equities that were included in that chat group at any time,” according to CNN.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe echoed her stance before the same committee: “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.”