The Trump National Security Signal Leak & What Congress Must Do Next

UPDATE: We always knew the first Signal leak would not be an isolated incident. Now, the Pentagon appears to be on fire with new reporting that the Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, was involved in not one but two separate Signal group chats used by top Trump allies to discuss U.S. military strikes on Yemen. Even worse, this group chat included his wife, his brother, and close associates with koperational specifics discussed like flight schedules of the Hornets that would be targeting the Houthi Rebel sites.. 

This isn’t just reckless—it’s the deliberate sidelining of formal national security processes by the very people nominated to run them. 

A reminder about the first Signal leak: on March 24, 2025 the Trump administration’s own Cabinet used an unsecured group chat to plan a U.S. military strike on Yemen—and accidentally included The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief in the conversation. And reports continue to flood out of the Department of Defense about Pete Hegseth’s chaotic mismanagement, putting his extreme lack of qualifications on full display.

And on that very same day, the U.S. Senate, with the help of more than a dozen Democrats, voted to confirm Christopher Landau as Deputy Secretary of State—a senior role in the very administration that just exposed a national security catastrophe.

The Trump administration's approach to national security and information handling, amongst several other issues, continues to serve as a test. And yet, too many in Congress are failing.

  • The Leak

    • The Leak

    On the morning of March 24th The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg published a bombshell piece: he had been accidentally added to a Signal group chat that included:

    • Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth
    • Secretary of State Marco Rubio
    • National Security Adviser Michael Waltz
    • CIA Director John Ratcliffe
    • Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent
    • Vice President J.D. Vance
    • DNI Tulsi Gabbard
    • Trump fixer Stephen Miller

    In that chat, they discussed an imminent U.S. military strike on Houthi targets in Yemen. They shared classified-level details: target coordinates, weapons systems, internal debates, and political spin.

    Goldberg saw it all in real-time.

    Then, the strike happened—exactly as the chat had described.

    No one in the administration noticed a journalist was in the thread. No one removed him. He left voluntarily.

    This was a catastrophic breakdown of discipline, security, and basic competence.

    And now we know there was a second Signal group chat where Trump’s Defense Secretary was casually sharing classified military strike details with family members amongst others. This isn’t an isolated slip-up – it’s part of a clear pattern of incompetence, recklessness and disregard for basic national security protocols.

    But that’s not where this story ends.

  • The Landau Vote

    • Who Voted to Confirm Landau Even After the Leak

    On March 24, 2025, the same day The Atlantic revealed the Trump administration had leaked its own war plans in a Signal group chat, the U.S. Senate confirmed Christopher Landau as Deputy Secretary of State in a 63–32 vote.

    Let’s be clear: Senators had the story in front of them. They knew what had happened. It was obviously not an isolated incident. And they confirmed him anyway.

    11 Democrats (or caucusing Independents) voted YES with all Republicans to confirm Trump’s State Department nominee:

    • Michael Bennet (D-CO)

    • Chris Coons (D-DE)

    • Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV)

    • John Fetterman (D-PA)

    • Maggie Hassan (D-NH)

    • Tim Kaine (D-VA)

    • Angus King (I-ME)

    • Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)

    • Jacky Rosen (D-NV)

    • Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

    • Mark Warner (D-VA)

    The 32 Democrats (and 1 Independent) that stood strong and voted NO: 

    • Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD)

    • Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)

    • Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)

    • Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE)

    • Maria Cantwell (D-WA)

    • Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)

    • Ruben Gallego (D-AZ)

    • Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)

    • Martin Heinrich (D-NM)

    • Mazie Hirono (D-HI); Mark Kelly (D-AZ)

    • Andy Kim (D-NJ)

    • Ben Ray Luján (D-NM)

    • Ed Markey (D-MA)

    • Jeff Merkley (D-OR)

    • Chris Murphy (D-CT)

    • Patty Murray (D-WA)

    • Jon Ossoff (D-GA)

    • Alex Padilla (D-CA)

    • Gary Peters (D-MI)

    • Jack Reed (D-RI)

    • Brian Schatz (D-HI)

    • Adam Schiff (D-CA)

    • Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

    • Elissa Slotkin (D-MI)

    • Tina Smith (D-MN)

    • Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)

    • Raphael Warnock (D-GA)

    • Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

    • Peter Welch (D-VT)

    • Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)

    • Ron Wyden (D-OR)

    The 5 members of Congress did not vote on the confirmation: 

    • Cory Booker (D-NJ)
    • Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
    • Dick Durbin (D-IL)
    • John Hickenlooper (D-CO)
    • Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
  • The Ongoing Trump Takeover

    • Trump’s State Department Takeover is Ongoing

    Christopher Landau is just one of dozens of Trump loyalists moving through the confirmation process. You can see them all in this great tracker from The Washington Post and the Partnership for Public Service.

    As of late March:

    • 242 positions in the Department of State alone require Senate confirmation
    • Over a dozen high-profile nominees have been referred to committee
    • 53 Trump nominees have already been confirmed

    The list of pending Trump State Department nominees includes:

    • Reed Rubinstein – Legal Adviser
    • Thomas DiNanno – Undersecretary for Arms Control
    • Jacob Helberg – Undersecretary for Economic Growth
    • Michael DeSombre – Assistant Secretary, East Asia
    • Mike Huckabee – Ambassador to Israel
    • Kimberly Guilfoyle – Ambassador to Greece
    • David Perdue – Ambassador to China
    • Ron Johnson – Ambassador to Mexico

    Trump isn’t just stacking his government—he’s appointing political extremists to key global posts. And Democrats are enabling it.

  • Double Down

    • The Administration Doubles Down

    But, as most stories go, this catastrophe doesn’t end here. Instead of taking responsibility for leaking U.S. war plans to a journalist, friends and family, the Trump administration is lying, deflecting, and daring Congress to do something about it.

    After the first incident, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth dismissed the whole thing, telling reporters, “Nobody was texting war plans.” But that’s not what The Atlantic saw. In reality, senior officials discussed target coordinates, weapons systems, and political messaging in real-time—while a journalist was watching. 

    And when Congress tried to get answers, Trump’s team stonewalled.

    Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard testified before the House Intelligence Committee—but refused to admit whether she was the “TG” named in the Signal chat. She brushed off the leak as a mistake and claimed she didn’t recall key details. CIA Director John Ratcliffe also denied that any classified information was shared, despite clear evidence to the contrary.

    Democrats on the committee accused these officials of misleading Congress. Some even floated perjury charges. And they’re right to be furious—because this wasn’t just a slip-up. It was a catastrophic security breach, followed by a coordinated campaign to minimize, deny, and conceal the truth.

    Now here we are, with yet another secret group chat surfacing—showing, once again, a total disregard for our national security. This administration continues to prove over and over again that it isn’t just reckless. It’s shameless. And if Congress doesn’t act now, consequences will only continue to escalate.

  • Take Action Now

    • How Congress Must Respond

    Democrats don’t control either chamber—but that doesn’t mean they’re powerless. They can still use the rules, the calendar, and the spotlight to fight back. And Republicans? Well, we need to make sure that we’re shining a light on their dangerous complicity.

    What Senate Democrats Must Do

    Senate Democrats don’t have the votes to block Trump’s nominees outright—but they do have the power to slow his takeover of the State Department to a crawl. They can force tough votes. They can force the media and the public to pay attention. That’s not symbolic—that’s strategy. If they use the tools available to them, they can make every single confirmation painful, public, and politically costly.

    This is about more than opposing bad nominees. It’s about treating this like the authoritarian threat it is—and using every inch of power to fight back.

    Here’s what Senate Democrats must do now:

    • Demand Pete Hegseth’s immediate resignation. Anyone who casually shares classified information with family and friends has NO business overseeing the Pentagon. Some members, like Senators Tammy Duckworth and Jack Reed have already done this, the rest of Congress should follow suit. 
    • Vote NO on every Trump nominee. Period. No more “good Trump appointees.” No more bipartisan cover for a dangerous administration.
    • Demand public hearings through the Senate Foreign Relations, Armed Services, and Intelligence Committees. Force Republicans to vote on subpoenaing witnesses—and if they vote no, talk about it non-stop.
    • Use floor speeches and media appearances to keep the spotlight on the breach. The press will move on unless Democrats maintain high pressure. Senators have platforms—use them.

    Refuse to allow leadership to brush this aside. If Chuck Schumer won’t lead this fight, it’s time for others to step up—and call him out. The country needs serious leadership, not more sleepwalking.

    Call Your Democratic Senator

    CALL NOW

    If you have a Senate Democrat (or two!) make the call now.

    GET THE SCRIPT
    Email Your Democratic Senator

    EMAIL NOW

    If your senator is a Democrat, send an email now.

    EMAIL NOW

    What House Democrats Can Do

    House Democrats don’t vote on confirmations—and in the minority, they don’t control committees or have subpoena power. But they do have voices, procedural tools, and platforms. And they can use them to elevate this crisis, expose Trump’s dangerous appointees, and increase the political cost of Senate Democrats continuing to rubber-stamp confirmations. They did a great job in the House Intelligence Committee a few days after the leak, but we need them to keep it up.

    Here’s what they can do right now:

    • Hold shadow hearings or minority forums with national security experts, whistleblowers, and legal scholars. Just because Republicans won’t investigate doesn’t mean the public can’t hear the truth. These hearings can create media moments, build pressure, and highlight the contrast between Democrats demanding accountability and Republicans covering for Trump.
    • Introduce a resolution condemning the breach and calling for a freeze on State Department confirmations until a full investigation is complete. Resolutions aren’t binding—but they make members take a side. And they give the public a clear demand to rally around.
    • Use procedural motions—like motions to adjourn or minority-day witness requests—to grind House business to a halt and force debates Republicans would rather avoid. These tactics draw attention, delay bad bills, and put the GOP’s refusal to address national security failures on full display.
    • File motions to subpoena witnesses and custodians of records involved in the Signal breach. Even if these motions are voted down, they put Republicans on record as shielding corruption—and help build the case for a deeper investigation when power shifts.
    • Invoke the “seven-member rule” to formally request documents from executive agencies. Under federal law, any seven members of the House Oversight Committee can demand records. Even if the Trump administration resists, invoking the rule shows the public who's fighting—and who’s hiding.

    Call on Senate Democrats to act—especially Chuck Schumer. Every day Schumer allows Trump’s nominees to sail through with Democratic votes is another day the resistance crumbles. So far, only two House Democrats have called for Schumer to resign as Minority Leader and make room for someone willing to fight. That number should be growing every day. House Democrats can help lead that charge—and force the Senate to answer for its failures.

    Call Your Democratic Representative

    CALL NOW

    If you have a Democratic Representative in the House, make the call now.

    GET THE SCRIPT
    Email Your Democratic Representative

    EMAIL NOW

    If your House Representative is a Democrat, send them an email now.

    EMAIL NOW

    What About Senate Republicans?

    Let’s not sugarcoat it. Senate Republicans knew exactly what had happened when they voted to confirm Christopher Landau—on the very day the first Signal chat leak was reported. This wasn’t an accident. It was a conscious choice to close ranks and cover for Trump. Again.

    These same senators have stood by Trump through:

    • Multiple criminal indictments
    • Violent insurrection
    • Open defiance of congressional oversight
    • And now, a war plan leak that could have gotten people killed.

    They are not neutral. They are not passive. They are complicit.

    And it’s up to us to shine a light on their complicity and make them pay a price with the folks they work for back home.

    Call Your Republican Senator

    CALL NOW

    If you have a Senate Republican (or two!) make the call now.

    GET THE SCRIPT
    Write a Letter to the Editor About your Republican Senator

    WRITE A LTE NOW

    If you have a Senate Republican (or two!) write a letter to the editor about their complicity.

    WRITE A LTE

    If This Isn't the Line, What Is?

    Donald Trump’s Cabinet leaked military plans to a journalist in real-time and deliberately ignored formal national security processes not once, but twice (and there could be more for all we know). And our Democratic senators still voted to confirm one of the officials responsible the very same day of the first Signal chat leak.

    And Republicans? They fell in line without hesitation. Because they always do. Because they’re not afraid of us.

    Let’s change that.

    Let’s show every Democrat who wavers that they’ll be held accountable. Let’s make every Republican who backed this nightmare pay a political price. Let’s raise our voices louder than the noise machines and remind them all: we are watching, we are organizing, and we are done letting this slide.

    No more rubber stamps. No more cowardice. No more complicity.

    We stop them here—or we lose so much more later.