Trump Admin Offers First Testimony to Congress Since “War Plan” Leak

What Happened?

The Trump administration faced a challenging round of questioning by Congress Tuesday after offering their first testimony since a security breach of war plans.

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner (Va.) on the Senate Intelligence Committee criticized the administration for using a Signal group to discuss plans for carrying out bombing in Yemen.

The Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to the group chat that without top intelligence officials realizing.

Warner denounced what he called a pattern of 'careless, incompetent behavior' about the handling of sensitive information.

'Putting aside for a moment that classified information should never be discussed over an unclassified system, it’s also just mind-boggling,' Warner said.

Warner also stated that national security adviser Mike Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not 'conduct hygiene 101' after failing to realize Goldberg was added to the chat.

'If this was the case of a military officer or an intelligence officer, and they had this kind of behavior, they would be fired,' he added.

The senator took to social platform X before his opening committee remarks and called for the resignations of both Waltz and Hegseth.

Why it Matters

President Donald Trump has reportedly stood by his national security adviser following the incident in his first substantive remarks since the news broke.

'Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man,' Trump told NBC News during a phone interview Tuesday.

Trump told the outlet one of Waltz's staff members was on the phone and had Goldberg's number on there.

He stated the journalist's presence there had 'no impact at all' on the military operation.

Top Democratic officials reportedly issued a separate letter asking about other instances where classified matters were discussed using the unapproved Signal messaging service.

Secretary Hegseth claimed on Monday that 'nobody was texting war plans.'

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also stated Tuesday that 'no classified material was sent to the thread.'

But as Goldberg reported, the text chain 'contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed Houthi-rebels in Yemen.'

The strikes reportedly began two hours after Goldberg received the details.

How it Affects You

While shining a glimpse into the Trump administration’s priorities, this year's annual hearing also allowed for the importance of classified material to be reiterated.

A former intelligence official told POLITICO that the situation could have been averted if the government had a chat service to handle classified information.

The Trump administration will learn from this event as a reminder overall when addressing the way things are shared concerning national security.

This incident should also improve the potential risks of massive security gaps and how highly classified discussions will be held electronically moving forward.