Trump Blows Huge Hole in Adviser’s Excuse for War Plan Leak

The Trump administration may one day settle on a version of events regarding how a journalist got included in a Signal group chat about striking Houthis in Yemen, but Tuesday was not that day.

White House National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, during a Fox News interview, took responsibility for the “embarrassing” error, while suggesting that The Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg could have somehow schemed his way into the chat.

Goldberg reported that Waltz himself invited Goldberg to it.

Waltz said, “We’re going to get to the bottom of it,” leaving much uncertain. But one thing he said did not happen was a staffer introducing Goldberg into the group.

“A staffer wasn’t responsible, and I take full responsibility,” he told Laura Ingraham. “I built the group. My job is to make sure everything is coordinated.”

Ingraham followed up moments later, “So, a staffer did not put [in] his contact information?”

“No, no, no,” Waltz said. “Of course not.”

Not so, according to Donald Trump.

Just an hour later, in a pre-taped interview on Newsmax’s Greg Kelly Reports, Trump pointed the finger at a Waltz staffer.

“What it was, we believe, is somebody that was on the line with permission—somebody that was with Mike Waltz, worked for Mike Waltz at a lower level—had, I guess, Goldberg’s number, or called through the app, and somehow this guy ended up on the call,” Trump said.

The method of communication was a group text, not a call.

“Now, it wasn’t classified, as I understand it,” Trump continued. “There was no classified information. There was no problem, and the attack was a tremendous success. So I can only go by what I’ve been told. I wasn’t involved in it, but I was told by—and the other people weren’t involved at all. But I feel very comfortable, actually.”

Trump’s comments echoed those from an earlier appearance before reporters, claiming “I don’t think he [Waltz] should apologize. I think he is doing his best. It’s equipment and technology that’s not perfect and probably he won’t be using it again, at least not in the near future.”

Tuesday’s mix-up hasn’t been the only instance of the administration not getting its story straight.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who was also part of the group chat, on Monday denied texting about war plans, even though the White House National Security Council had confirmed the chat’s authenticity hours earlier.

Hegseth appeared before the media again on Tuesday night at a briefing in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, again denying his involvement. “Nobody’s texting war plans. I know exactly what I’m doing,” he said.