Using the Signal app to talk about US strikes on Houthi targets
Posted By RichC on March 29, 2025
The talk from most in the media this past week as been about several in the Trump administration’s team discussing plans to strike Houthi targets in Yemen … and that they used the encrypted app Signal to communicate 
with each other on a group chat titled “Houthi PC small group.” The Atlantic published a story after Jeffery Goldberg was added to a secure chat. That chat was initiated by National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, included senior officials like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. On March 15, Hegseth shared detailed operational updates, including timing, weather conditions, and specific weapons like F-18 jets and Tomahawk missiles, just hours before the attack commenced.
We still don’t know how or why Goldberg was added (assumed accidentally … although questions still abound).
- Did someone working for Waltz want to embarrass the Trump administration?
- Was someone paid or promised something to add Goldberg?
- Or (the most likely) someone assembling the team, Waltz or an assistant, made a mistake and add JG – see below the break.
- Does some at Signal have the ability to insert a name?
We can only speculate but this smells:
In January 2024, Katherine Maher became the CEO of NPR. She also serves as the chair of the board of directors for the Signal Foundation, the nonprofit organization that oversees the encrypted messaging app Signal.— Rich Corbett
(@RichC)
The leak exposed sensitive information that could have jeopardized the mission and U.S. personnel if intercepted by adversaries. The Trump administration downplayed the incident, with officials like White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and President Trump insisting the information wasn’t classified and denying it constituted “war plans.” Trump called it a minor “glitch,” emphasizing the strike’s success.
Critics, including Democrats and some Republicans, argued the details were classified, pointing to operational security breaches and potential legal violations, as federal policy restricts discussing official business on commercial apps like Signal. The app, known for end-to-end encryption, was not the issue; rather, human error—Waltz’s accidental inclusion of Goldberg—caused the breach. The story sparked outrage, congressional calls for investigation, and debates over the administration’s handling of sensitive communications.
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