Speaking to reporters from the Oval Office, Donald Trump focused on air strikes in Yemen rather than Signal chat leaks.
United States President Donald Trump has dismissed a recent Signal chat leak as a “witch hunt” and suggested, without evidence, that the encrypted messaging app “could be defective” as his administration works to manage the fallout.
When asked by a reporter on Wednesday if his administration should take more responsibility for the chat leak, Trump responded, “the press has exaggerated it. I think it’s a witch hunt. I wasn’t involved in it. I wasn’t there.”
On Monday, the Trump administration confirmed that a journalist from The Atlantic magazine was accidentally included in a top-secret chat discussing an upcoming attack on the Houthis in Yemen.
Following widespread criticism from House Democrats, some Republican senators are now calling for an investigation into the scandal, expressing concerns about the political fallout if it is not properly addressed.
Senator Roger Wicker, the Republican chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, stated that he and Senator Jack Reed – the committee’s top Democrat – will send a letter to the Trump administration requesting an expedited inspector general investigation into the use of the Signal messaging app.
They are also calling for a classified briefing with a top administration official “who actually has the facts and can speak on behalf of the administration,” Wicker said.
“The information, as published recently, appears to me to be of such a sensitive nature that, based on my knowledge, I would have wanted it classified,” he added.
When asked about the call for an inspector general probe, Trump replied, “It doesn’t bother me.”
In 2014, Hillary Clinton, who served as secretary of state under President Barack Obama, faced criticism from Republicans for using a private email server for communications.
It became one of the biggest talking points of the 2016 presidential election, with Clinton accused of undermining national security. She was ultimately defeated by Trump.
Compromising Mistake
The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, published an article on Monday describing the shocking realization that he had been added to a group chat with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and others, discussing plans for military strikes in Yemen.
The White House claimed that the information shared through Signal was not classified, an assertion that Democrats called into question, given that it contained sensitive U.S. military plans against Yemen’s Houthis.
Senator Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the Trump administration’s stance could be summed up in one word: “baloney.”
There are no signs that the controversy will fade soon for Trump, who has stated that he stands by his national security team and has questioned the reporter’s credibility.
At the same time, he has made it clear that he prefers his team to discuss such operations in person and in more secure settings, though it remains unclear if any changes will be implemented as a result.
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