The Group Chat of Incompetence
"People have gone to jail for 1/100th of what — even 1/1,000th of what Hillary Clinton did," said Pete Hegseth in 2016, describing Clinton's email scandal as "criminal." In 2017, Hegseth would also call her "reckless."
"Nobody is above the law. Not even Hillary Clinton," said Marco Rubio that same year.
"Biden's sitting National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan sent Top Secret messages to Hillary Clinton's private account. And what did DOJ do about it? Not a damn thing," tweeted Michael Waltz in 2023.
What changed? Well, Pete Hegseth became secretary of defense, Marco Rubio became secretary of state, Michael Waltz became national security adviser, and the work group chat just got extra spicy.
Because these are the same people — along with Vice President J.D. Vance — who were just caught sending detailed military operational plans regarding strikes on the Houthis in Yemen through the messaging app Signal. And how do we know this? Jeffrey Goldberg — a journalist for The Atlantic — was inexplicably included in the group chat.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt did her job and ran cover for the Trump administration, describing Goldberg as "well-known for his sensationalist spin." Hegseth called Goldberg a "deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist." And President Donald Trump's response? "I don't know anything about it."
Look, there are two layers to this scandal — and yes, it is a scandal.
First, the fact that any discussions regarding U.S. military actions were held on a non-government-monitored social media platform is unacceptable. The claim by Hegseth and others that the conversation didn't include "war plans" — contrary to the reporting of Goldberg — is, frankly, irrelevant.
What matters is that this conversation happened at all, out of reach of future oversight.
Second, the fact that any discussions regarding U.S. military actions were shared with a journalist is evidence of the sort of unforgivable recklessness that Hegseth supposedly loathes.
Let alone a journalist that members of this same group chat called "deceitful and highly discredited"!
There are obviously those on the Left who are engaging in hyperbole in order to land a strong left hook on Donald Trump. After all, his administration has been running roughshod over what remains of the bruised and battered Democratic Party.
But that doesn't mean that Hegseth, Vance, Waltz and Rubio are blameless.
Sure, this isn't as bad as Hillary Clinton's email scandal. But that doesn't mean it's not bad.
What makes matters worse, we're supposed to be the ones who aren't corrupt, who are transparent and are competent.
I'm sorry, but sitting on the toilet and texting your work buddies sensitive information about an upcoming military strike in Yemen and accidentally including a journalist is a bit too transparent, utterly incompetent and — based on the frantic attempt to bury this like nothing happened — worryingly corrupt.
People voted to have adults back in charge. Right now, it feels like we have a group of teenagers who don't know the difference between the "Bomb Yemen" and "Reply All" button.
If Pete Hegseth and Karoline Leavitt are right, and Jeffrey Goldberg is a "deceitful and highly discredited so-called journalist" who is "well-known for his sensationalist spin", then what does that say about the Trump administration who apparently have him on speed dial?