National Security Adviser Mike Waltz has been widely rebuked. Things didn’t stop there. He accidentally leaked sensitive military information by using a Signal group chat, a protocol breach. The episode has received some notoriety for the fact that Waltz mistakenly added journalist Jeffrey Goldberg to the conversation. In that conversation, they shared key information about an intended Yemeni bombing raid just two hours before the attack. So serious is this blunder that it has been called “freaking MIND-BLOWING” by The Atlantic.
Waltz was the one who wrangled together this signal group, which brought together some heavy hitters like Pete Hegseth and Jack Vance. The chat was meant for conversations among trusted parties, but it all went wrong once Goldberg was accidentally added. Waltz got very specific in the discussion. In particular, he documented the timing, nature and target of a bombing raid the Pentagon did indeed plan against a Houthi rebel commander in Yemen. Indeed, this disclosure led to instant outcry from former US military leaders, who called the data “classified.”
After taking heavy fire for the blunder, in an attempt to turn down the heat, Waltz went on Fox News, where he accepted “full responsibility” for the debacle. It’s just an accident, he said, that he happened to type a bit quickly. Because of this, Goldberg saw the sensitive message in error. In that same interview, an evidently furious Waltz even called Goldberg “scum,” highlighting the characteristically delicate feelings one has when their planned and coordinated leak unexpectedly escapes.
“Take that, sir! You and your basket of deplorables!”
Waltz raised even more hackles for allegedly describing Elon Musk as “frolicking, prancing, dancing like a dipshit” in public fora. This was right before last year’s election. This comment has added to Waltz’s difficulties as he comes under increasing scrutiny.
The unfortunate incident has raised and should raise grave alarm over operational security in many high-level governmental communications. Retired military leaders believe a serious breach has just taken place. They argued that these mistakes can be extremely harmful to national security, calling Waltz’s actions completely unheard of and intolerable.
Waltz’s behind-the-scenes role in shaping the military operations Signal chat has faced blunt and extensive rebuke from both progressive and establishment corners. His decision to share classified information so freely, and without any sort of verification of chat participants, is a real cause for alarm. In doing so, he mistakenly forwarded a highly classified message about a plan to assassinate a Houthi rebel commander to Goldberg himself. Unfortunately, this error has done nothing except compound the issue.
The Signal chat leak has landed Waltz in a tough spot. It underscores the dire need for secure communication channels when engaging in sensitive military operations. This unfortunate incident serves to illustrate the lurking dangers of a digital communication infrastructure. So we need to treat these tools as fragile weapons of war.