A Pentagon Inspector General report found Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth risked exposing sensitive information that could have endangered U.S. troops, according to a source briefed on the matter.
The Defense Department’s inspector general found that the information Hegseth shared in Signal had been classified by U.S. Central Command before the secretary’s disclosure to his colleagues and his wife.
Hegseth refused to sit down for an interview as part of the investigation.
Hegseth also insisted in his statement to the IG that the information he shared in the chat was not sensitive and that it would not put troops at risk if exposed.
CNN was first to report on the findings in the IG report.
In a post on X Wednesday evening, Hegseth said, “No classified information. Total exoneration. Case closed. Houthis bombed into submission. Thank you for your attention to this IG report.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the report “affirms what the Administration has said from the beginning — no classified information was leaked, and operational security was not compromised” and added “President Trump stands by Secretary Hegseth.”
Rep. Adam Smith, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, in a statement called the IG report “a damning review”.
“The way he chose to communicate this information put service members at risk,” Smith said. “Further, the lack of transparency that Hegseth displayed by refusing to meet with the IG and answer questions is highly concerning. Even after the release of this report, the Secretary refuses to take responsibility for his actions.”
The unclassified findings by the IG are expected to be released Thursday.
Last March, The Atlantic revealed the existence of the Signal group chat that involved several members of President Donald Trump’s national security team, including Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance and Trump’s national security adviser at the time, Mike Waltz.
According to The Atlantic, Waltz inadvertently added Jeffrey Goldberg, its executive editor, to the chat, which included discussions about an upcoming military plan to attack sites in Yemen controlled by Houthi militants.
