26 Things I Know About the Signalgate SNAFU

Look, I know I’m prone to using dramatic prose. What can I say? I love a good turn of phrase.

But now’s not the time for that.

The spin coming from the White House around this story published by Atlantic Editor in Chief Jeffrey Goldberg is shameful. As many of those involved try to manipulate the facts to cover their own rear ends, there needs to be a clear accounting of the truth. And because of our hyper-partisan media environment, it must be one that relies not on partisan dynamics or individual reputations, but on the facts alone.

So I’m leaving out the opinion and the bluster for a change. All that you will find below is a list of 26 things I know about this event, with each line containing links to evidence.

I don’t want to convince you of anything. Today, make your own opinion.

1. I know that on March 15 at approximately 2 PM Eastern, the United States Military bombed Houthi rebel targets in Yemen.

2. I know that Jeffrey Goldberg was aware that the bombings would happen two hours before they did.

3. I know this is because Trump’s National Security Advisor Michael Waltz accidentally invited Goldberg to a group chat on the Signal messaging app.

4. I know that this group chat also included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and lead Russia negotiator Steve Witkoff, among others.

5. I know that the intent of the group chat was to plan upcoming military action against the Houthi rebels.

6. I know that the messages in the group chat were set to expire after 1 week — a likely violation of the Presidential Records Act if no other records of the messages were kept.

7. I know that during this group chat, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth shared information about the weapons that would be used in the attacks, as well as the timing of the attacks.

8. I know that this information was classified under DoD and DNI standards.

9. I know that the Espionage Act makes criminal the improper transmission of classified information relating to national defense through gross negligence.

10. I know that Signal is not a government-approved channel for handling classified information.

11. I know that the NSA warned about vulnerabilities that could allow foreign governments to gain access to information transmitted via Signal, including hackers deployed by the Russian Government.

12. I know that Steve Witkoff was in Russia at the same time the group chat was being used to transmit classified information, and Tulsi Gabbard was traveling in Asia.

13. I know that the Russian government supports the Houthi rebels.

14. I know that the Houthi Rebels possess weapons that can take down U.S. military aircraft.

15. I know that the Russian government has a history of using cyber-espionage to steal American military intelligence and share it with enemies of the United States.

16. I know that Russia’s sharing of this intelligence can compromise U.S. military operations/put American service members at risk, and has done so in the past.

17. I know the improper sharing of the aforementioned classified information was initially denied by the White House, by Pete Hegseth, and by Tulsi Gabbard.

18. I know that Mike Waltz denied having invited Goldberg to the group chat.

19. I know that Jeffrey Goldberg subsequently released evidence of this classified information being shared in the group chat, and that Mike Waltz himself invited Goldberg to the group.

20. I know that after this evidence came out, Gabbard and Waltz eventually took some responsibility.

21. I know this incident significantly mirrors the 2016 Hillary Clinton email scandal.

22. I know that the classified information stored on Clinton’s servers was found by the FBI to be discussions of events that had happened in the past, rather than information about future strikes that could potentially endanger active service members.

23. I know that because of this, a majority of Americans view the Signal chat as worse/more serious than the Clinton emails.

24. I know that many of those involved in the group chat are now attempting to downplay the seriousness of these leaks.

25. I know that these same individuals criticized Clinton’s lax email security as disqualifying of a presidential candidate.

26. I know that Pete Hegseth, the man who shared classified information via unclassified means, previously stated that anyone sharing classified information via unclassified means would and should be fired/imprisoned.

These are all facts. This is what I know, and now it’s what you know.

Now you can make up your own mind about who to believe.

You can make up your own opinion on whether our government is run by competent patriots or inept stooges put in place solely because of their undying loyalty to one man.

You can determine all on your own if this administration is one worth defending when it clearly doesn’t defend you.

Sorry, a little bit of opinion did end up sneaking in there at the end.

I told you I’m a sucker for prose.