Trump Reaffirms Support for Hegseth After Second Signal Chat Controversy
Trump Reaffirms Support for Hegseth After Second Signal Chat Controversy
President Trump expressed unwavering support for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during a phone call Sunday night, just hours after The New York Times reported that Hegseth had again shared sensitive military information in a Signal group chat, according to a source familiar with the conversation.
Hegseth reportedly phoned the president around 8 p.m. The source, who requested anonymity to discuss the private call, said Trump blamed the controversy on discontented "leakers" and assured Hegseth that he had his full backing. Trump also remarked that he was no stranger to dealing with leaks.
Following the call, the president directed his aides to defend Hegseth publicly.
The next morning, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared on Fox & Friends, the show Hegseth once hosted. Leavitt denied that Hegseth had disclosed classified material in the chat, despite The Times reporting that he had shared sensitive information about upcoming U.S. military actions against the Houthis in Yemen. The group chat reportedly included Hegseth’s wife, brother, and personal lawyer, and was created to coordinate strategy around his nomination.
“This is what happens when the entire Pentagon is fighting against you and the sweeping reforms you're trying to enact,” Leavitt told host Brian Kilmeade. She, too, dismissed the Times story as the work of internal leakers.
Trump’s decision to stand by Hegseth reflects a broader shift in his second-term approach — so far resisting calls to dismiss top officials despite mounting controversies, in stark contrast to the rapid turnover during his first administration.
Hegseth had previously faced criticism for sharing military details in another Signal chat organized by National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, which accidentally included The Atlantic’s editor, Jeffrey Goldberg.
Adding to the weekend’s drama, Politico on Sunday night published an op-ed by John Ullyot, Hegseth’s recently departed spokesman, who argued that the Pentagon is in “disarray” under Hegseth’s leadership.
