‘Secretary Hegseth Needs To Resign’: Defense Chief Called To Step Down After Signal Debacle
Pentagon boss spread war plans on unsecured app
In the sharpest rebuke yet following the stunning revelations that top national security officials shared military operational details on a commercial chat with a top journalist looking on, at least two Democratic senators are calling for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to step aside.
Sens. Mark Kelly, of Arizona, and Mark Warner of Virginia, both have made remarks seeking Hegseth’s resignation.
In a bombshell still rocking Washington DC, Hegseth shared details of the administration’s plans earlier this month on the commercial Signal messaging app.
Hegseth shared those details on the unclassified app with such top figures as Vice President JD Vance, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz, and others — all without realizing that journalist Jeffrey Goldberg was also in the chat.
Goldberg published two articles about the incident this week in The Atlantic.
Goldberg’s revelations have been consuming official Washington, and Kelly and Warner want Hegseth’s head to roll. Both senators are members of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Before leading the Pentagon, Hegseth was a Fox News personality who had had problems with excessive drinking and allegations of sexual misconduct.
“Two months ago, on the day of Secretary Hegseth’s confirmation vote, I asked my colleagues if it was worth the risk to our servicemembers and our national security to confirm the most unprepared nominee for this job we’ve ever seen,” Kelly said in a statement. “This is what happens when you put unqualified people in important jobs where lives are on the line. It’s fortunate this massive error didn’t result in American casualties, but for the safety of our servicemembers and our country, Secretary Hegseth needs to resign.”
Warner criticized Trump’s director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, for what he called “lying” about the seriousness of the breach.
“We’ve got to find out how deep this went,” Warner said, adding that he’s pushing for an FBI investigation into the matter.
Warner spoke during a podcast interview Wednesday.
He also noted that this isn’t the Trump administration’s first national security debacle, noting that officials earlier released the identities of 200 CIA agents.
“It’s not rocket science. Don’t do this stuff on an unclassified network,” Warner said, adding, “I’ve called for Hegseth’s resignation because I think putting this stuff out is so beyond the pale on Signal.”
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