Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared sensitive details about a planned military strike in Yemen in a second private Signal chat, according to The New York Times. This chat included not just government personnel—but also Hegseth’s wife, his brother, and his personal lawyer.
The strike, aimed at the Houthi group in Yemen, was scheduled for March 15. The Times reports that Hegseth shared “flight schedules for the F/A-18 Hornets targeting the Houthis”—critical details about when and how the military would carry out the attack.
Even more troubling: Hegseth shared this on Signal, a commercial messaging app, rather than using secure government communication systems. The same day, he had also shared similar details in another Signal chat that accidentally included The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg.
This newly revealed second chat, called “Defense | Team Huddle,” was created by Hegseth himself in January—before he was even confirmed as defense secretary. According to the Times, he used his private phone to access it.
Among the members of that chat were his wife, Jennifer Hegseth and his brother Phil Hegseth. Also in the group: his personal lawyer, Tim Parlatore.
The report notes: “Mr. Hegseth’s wife, Jennifer, a former Fox News producer, is not a Defense Department employee, but she has traveled with him overseas and drawn criticism for accompanying her husband to sensitive meetings with foreign leaders.”
“It is not clear why Phil Hegseth and Tim Parlatore would need to know about upcoming military strikes aimed at the Houthis in Yemen,” The Times also noted.
Four people with direct knowledge of the chat confirmed the story to the Times. Their account paints a picture of a defense secretary casually sharing top-level military operations with close friends and family—on an unsecured app.
This latest development adds fuel to the fire over the Trump administration’s handling of national security. The fact that this wasn’t just a mistake—but a pattern—raises serious questions about judgment at the highest levels of government.
And it’s not just about breaking protocol. Sharing military plans with unauthorized people—even family—is a breach that could put lives at risk.
