The revelation that the nation’s top security officials accidentally shared war plans with a journalist on Signal shocked Washington on Monday, even before people knew what was in them.
The chat, set up by national security adviser Mike Waltz — which mistakenly included The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg — laid out the Trump administration’s thinking on whether to bomb the Houthis, a Yemen-based militant group that has targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
But the texts also included dissenting views rarely voiced in public and a flippant disregard for classified information. Here are some of the biggest takeaways:
Vance pushed back against bombing the Houthis.
Vice President JD Vance appeared hesitant to move forward with a bombing campaign against the Iran-backed group.
“We are making a mistake,” in bombing the Houthis, he said, since Europe relies on Red Sea trade more than the U.S. does.
“3 percent of US trade runs through the [Suez Canal]. 40 percent of European trade does,” he said. “There is a real risk that the public doesn’t understand this or why it’s necessary.”
Trump’s vice president doesn’t think he gets it.
Vance also suggested the president didn’t fully understand the stakes or the messaging in a bombing campaign against the Houthis.
“I am not sure the president is aware how inconsistent this is with his message on Europe right now,” Vance said, expressing concern that the strikes would drive up the cost of oil.
“There’s a further risk that we see a moderate to severe spike in oil prices,” he said. “I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself. But there is a strong argument for delaying this a month, doing the messaging work on why this matters, seeing where the economy is, etc.”
National security leaders likely shared classified information.
CIA chief John Ratcliffe — or someone on his staff using his name — texted the Signal chat information that Goldberg refused to print saying it “contained information that might be interpreted as related to actual and current intelligence operations.”
Hegseth also shared with the group other likely classified information. “The Hegseth post contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” Goldberg said.
The administration has feelings about Europe.
Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were clear about their dislike of European allies.
“I just hate bailing Europe out again,” Vance texted. The Red Sea, where the Houthis have been attacking commercial shipping, carries more European goods than it does for the U.S. market.
“I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC,” Hegseth responded, showing that the administration’s rejection of some of America’s closest allies isn’t just for show.
They did not mention that the U.K. is using its aerial refueling planes to help keep U.S. jets in the air over Yemen. The U.K., France and other NATO allies also have warships in the Red Sea escorting commercial ships and shooting down Houthi drones and missiles.
Let loose the emojis of war.
Waltz responded to the initial successful bombing runs, according to Goldberg, with “three emoji: a fist, an American flag, and fire.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles voiced messages of support, he said. Steve Witkoff, the Middle East special envoy, “responded with five emoji: two hands-praying, a flexed bicep, and two American flags.”
Vance responded to Hegseth’s updates about the bombs with, “I will say a prayer for victory.” Two others added prayer emojis.
