‘Absolutely’ Classified: Analysts Say The Atlantic’s Release of Attack Plans Prove Trump Officials Lied
The Atlantic has published specific attack plans of Houthi rebels that were mistakenly shared with editor Jeffrey Goldberg via a group Signal chat, and the immediate reaction from political and military intelligence analysts is that they sure look classified.
On Monday, Goldberg dropped a bombshell report about Trump National Security Adviser Mike Waltz accidentally adding him to a group chat in which the principals committee – the heads of the top American national security agencies — discussed plans to strike Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen earlier this month.
The White House and pro-Trump media figures have since bent over backwards to try to defend the massive security breach, which could potentially involve crimes, given the law that Trump enacted during his first administration in response to Hillary Clinton’s email server controversy.
After fits and starts and various attempts at explanations, Trump surrogates eventually landed on their insistence that no classified information was shared with Goldberg. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth was defiant in telling a reporter Monday, “Nobody was texting war plans. And that’s all I have to say about that.”
During a Tuesday White House press event, President Donald Trump repeatedly insisted that none of the information shared was classified. You can see for yourself in the original article or our summation here.
But how is it playing on social media? Good question — many people are saying it looks classified, which, if true, suggests a criminal investigation may be forthcoming. To wit:
In fairness, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt disagrees with these assessments, insisting that The Atlantic “concedes” that nothing shared were “war plans” perhaps because the word “war” was not included in any texts:
It’s challenging to read through the article and see specific targets and military strikes detailed and not conclude that these are not war plans. Which is a point made by CNN’s Alex Marquardt:
More on the Trump Admin War Plan Leak:
- The Atlantic Publishes Trump Attack Plans After Administration Denies Group Chat
- Trump Just Handed His Biggest Enemy in Media a Slam Dunk
- But How Did It End Up In Your Phone?’ Laura Ingraham Grills Trump NatSec Advisor Over Leak ‘That’s a Pretty Big Problem’
- Jeffrey Goldberg Says He’s Considering Releasing More of Signal Chat — As Trump Officials Deny Under Oath That It Was Classified
- JD Vance Criticizes Trump in Leaked War Plans Group Chat: ‘Not Sure the President Is Aware How Inconsistent This Is’
- Trump Officials Stumped At Hearing When Asked If Goldberg Can Post Bombshell Texts Since They Claim No Classified Info
