Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard reiterated on Wednesday that classified information was not shared in a private conversation among US officials about a military operation that accidentally involved a journalist.
Testifying before a House committee, Gabbard underscored, “The discussion was frank and sensitive, but as the president and national security advisor said, no classified information was discussed. There were no sources, methods, locations, or war plans discussed.”
The Trump administration is under fire for the debacle, which was initially exposed by The Atlantic. The editor-in-chief of the magazine disclosed that he had been inadvertently added to a Signal group chat among top officials debating a US attack against Houthi rebels in Yemen. On Wednesday, The Atlantic released the chat log, showing that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared information regarding the timing and weapons platforms to be employed in the operation.
At the House hearing, intelligence authorities insisted that classified information had not been leaked. The published transcript, however, indicated that Hegseth dispatched a message to the group including Vice President JD Vance and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz defining specific attack schedules and deployment of weapons.
Gabbard, in response to queries about how she was involved in the conversation in the chat, explained, “I wasn’t actively involved in that aspect of the conversation and only responded lastly.” She further explained that she could not remember particular details of the conversation in her previous testimony.
The drama plays out as the Trump administration makes further attempts to negotiate a resolution to Russia’s conflict in Ukraine a strategy some members of Congress have decried as too pro-Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“As best I can tell, we’re on Team Kremlin,” Representative Jim Himes complained, expressing concerns over national security implications associated with the incident.