Trump downplays Yemen chat leak on Signal as a minor ’glitch’; Waltz takes ‘full responsibility’

Trump downplays sensitive military plans texted to journalist, calls it a "glitch," as Democrats criticize administration's handling of information.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday (March 25, 2025) downplayed the texting of sensitive plans for a military strike against Yemen's Houthis this month to a group chat that included a journalist, saying it was “the only glitch in two months” of his administration as Democratic lawmakers heaped criticism on the administration for handling highly sensitive information carelessly.

Mr. Trump told NBC News that the lapse “turned out not to be a serious one," and expressed his continued support for National Security Adviser Mike Waltz.

Mr. Waltz, according to an article posted online Monday by The Atlantic, appeared to have mistakenly added the magazine's editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, to a chat that included 18 senior administration officials discussing planning for the strike.

“Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man," Trump said. He also appeared to point blame on an unnamed Mr. Waltz aide for Mr. Goldberg being added to the chain. “It was one of Michael’s people on the phone. A staffer had his number on there."

But the use of messaging app Signal to discuss a sensitive operation has opened the administration to blistering criticism from Democratic lawmakers who expressed outrage at the White House's and senior administration officials' insistence that no classified information was shared. Senior administration officials have struggled to explain why the publicly available app was used to discuss such a delicate matter.

Mr. Waltz said Tuesday he was not sure how Mr. Goldberg ended up on the chat.

"This one in particular, I’ve never met, don’t know, never communicated with,” Waltz said.