WTF?! Hegseth Allegedly Pulled CLASSIFIED Strike Info from Secure System for Signal Chats

Alright, deep breaths everyone. Remember Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's little Signal app escapades? The ones where he discussed sensitive military operations in Yemen (accidentally including a reporter) and then again (reportedly including his wife and brother) using an insecure messaging app known for disappearing texts? Well, hold onto your security clearances, because it just got so much worse.

According to new reports today (April 22nd, 2025) citing sources familiar with the chats, the specific, highly sensitive details Hegseth shared – like the exact launch times and bomb drop times for US warplanes about to strike Houthi targets in Yemen – weren't just casually mentioned. He allegedly pulled that information directly from a secure U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) military communications channel.

Let that sink in. The allegation isn't just that he used the wrong app; it's that he actively took what multiple officials describe as highly classified operational details from a secure, protected military system and then pasted them into an unclassified, commercially available, encrypted app. An app that, again, was reportedly used in chats involving people like his wife and brother, whose security clearances for that specific operational information are highly questionable.

Former Defense Secretary (and CIA Director) Leon Panetta didn't mince words when reacting to this specific allegation, telling the AP it's "unheard of to have a secretary of defense committing these kind of serious security breaches." He added that details about attack plans are "without question the most classified information you can have."

Hegseth, for his part, is sticking to his guns, aggressively denying that any information shared was classified. He told Fox News today, "I said repeatedly, nobody is texting war plans... What was shared over Signal then and now, however you characterize it, was informal, unclassified coordinations, for media coordinations and other things." He's also blaming the revelations about the second Signal chat (the one with family) on disgruntled former staff members he recently fired or transferred – part of a reported purge of his inner circle that has left him looking increasingly isolated and suspicious, according to Pentagon insiders.

So, the Secretary of Defense's defense is essentially: "It wasn't classified (even though experts say it almost certainly was), I was just coordinating informally (on an insecure app with family about military strikes), and the people telling you about the second chat are just bitter leakers I fired." Does that sound convincing to you?

This latest development transforms the narrative from gross incompetence and potential records law violations (which are bad enough) to potentially involving the deliberate mishandling of classified national security information at the highest level of the Pentagon. It raises urgent questions about operational security, risk to military personnel carrying out these missions, and the fundamental judgment of the person leading the Defense Department.

The Pentagon Inspector General's investigation is ongoing, and you can bet this latest bombshell allegation will be front and center. But honestly, how much worse can this get? We're talking about allegedly taking classified war plans from secure military networks and dropping them into insecure chats like they're grocery lists. It's a WTF moment of truly epic proportions, shaking confidence in the Pentagon's leadership during already turbulent times.

Sources:

• AP News. "Hegseth pulled airstrike info from secure military channel for Signal posts." April 22, 2025.

• PBS NewsHour. "Hegseth allegedly pulled airstrike info shared on second Signal post from secure military channel." April 22, 2025.

• Military Times. "Hegseth pulled info from secure channel for Signal chats: Report." April 22, 2025.

• Star Tribune. "Hegseth pulled airstrike info from secure military channel for Signal posts." April 22, 2025.