Recent revelations have surfaced regarding Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and his use of a personal phone to transmit sensitive information related to U.S. military operations in Yemen. According to two sources who spoke to NBC News, Hegseth shared details in a Signal group chat that included 13 participants, among them his wife and brother. This act follows a prior warning from an aide advising caution against sharing sensitive information on unsecured channels prior to the Yemen operation.
This development comes approximately a month after it was disclosed that Hegseth had previously shared operational details regarding strikes in Yemen through a different Signal chat, which inadvertently included the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. The New York Times was the first to report on the existence of this second Signal chat, citing four unnamed sources. Some of these sources indicated that the information shared by Hegseth in this latest chat—such as the flight schedule of the FA-18 planes—mirrored details from the earlier chat involving the Atlantic editor.
In response to the controversy, Sean Parnell, the chief Defense Department spokesman, firmly denied that Hegseth had disclosed any classified information, stating, “There was no classified information in any Signal chat.” Furthermore, Anna Kelly, a deputy press secretary at the White House, sought to downplay the significance of the second group chat, asserting that no classified information was shared despite media scrutiny.
The second Signal group chat included several key figures, though no other Cabinet-level officials were present. Participants comprised Hegseth’s chief of staff, Joe Kasper; his deputy chief of staff, Darin Selnick; and a retired Army sergeant major, Eric Geressy, who also serves as an advisor. Additional participants included Tim Parlatore, a legal advisor, along with Hegseth’s brother, Phil, and his wife, Jennifer.
Earlier in March, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, was mistakenly included in another Signal chat where Hegseth relayed operational plans for military strikes in Yemen prior to their execution. This incident is currently under investigation by the Defense Department’s inspector general. Notably, in both instances, Hegseth utilized his personal phone instead of his official device, raising concerns about the security of sensitive information.
The Pentagon has recently experienced significant turnover, including the departure of key advisors to Hegseth, Dan Caldwell and Selnick, who were escorted out in connection with an investigation into alleged leaks of sensitive information. Additionally, Kasper, Hegseth’s chief of staff, has left his position, as has Colin Carroll, chief of staff to the deputy secretary of defense. Caldwell, Selnick, and Carroll released a joint statement expressing their confusion regarding the investigation, claiming, “Unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door.”
Political reactions to these developments were swift. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) took to X, calling for Hegseth’s dismissal, stating, “The details keep coming out. We keep learning how Pete Hegseth put lives at risk.” Similarly, Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, characterized Hegseth's actions as “yet another alarming example” of the administration’s incompetence. Furthermore, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a military veteran, labeled Hegseth as “a threat to our national security,” emphasizing that his continued presence in the role endangers the lives of troops.
