{"id":7646,"date":"2025-03-25T12:05:02","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T12:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/capitol-agenda-gop-defends-waltz-after-war-plans-group-chat\/"},"modified":"2025-03-25T12:05:02","modified_gmt":"2025-03-25T12:05:02","slug":"capitol-agenda-gop-defends-waltz-after-war-plans-group-chat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/capitol-agenda-gop-defends-waltz-after-war-plans-group-chat\/","title":{"rendered":"Capitol agenda: GOP defends Waltz after war plans group chat"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Congressional Republicans are furious about senior Trump administration officials using a group chat to discuss war plans<\/u><\/a>. But they\u2019re not calling for anyone\u2019s head.<\/p>\n

Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg wrote in The Atlantic<\/u><\/a> he had \u2014 presumably by accident \u2014 been added to a group chat on Signal, an encrypted messaging app, that was used by several high-level Trump officials to plan the recent attack on the Houthis in Yemen.<\/p>\n

There are growing calls<\/u><\/a> within the White House for National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, who added Goldberg to the group chat, to resign. But GOP lawmakers have pushed back on the idea, with some defense hawks regarding the former congressman and Green Beret as a key link to the administration and someone they can trust to be a serious voice in Trump\u2019s circle.<\/p>\n

And many Hill Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson, are digging in to defend Waltz.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was made for that job, and I have full confidence in him,\u201d Johnson told reporters Monday night, hours after separately shrugging off the broader issues with the Signal chat<\/u><\/a> as a \u201cmistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many lawmakers were shocked \u2014 not just because seemingly no one noticed that Goldberg was added to the chat, but that senior officials would discuss sensitive national security information on a platform that could be hacked by foreign adversaries.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt minimum, it’s totally sloppy,\u201d said Rep. Nick LaLota, a military veteran who previously held top security clearance. Rep. Don Bacon, a member of the House Armed Services committee, said the incident was \u201cunconscionable.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Republicans largely dodged questions Monday about launching a congressional investigation, though many said they wanted a briefing. House Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast, a Trump ally, called the incident a \u201cmistake\u201d but said that he believed the White House should investigate, not Congress. House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers, when asked if there should be any hearings or probes into the issue, said he\u2019s \u201cstill trying to find out what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senate Armed Services Chair Roger Wicker was more willing than others to entertain a formal inquiry, saying, \u201cwe\u2019ll definitely look into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Keep an eye on a Senate Intelligence hearing today at 10 a.m., which is set to feature testimony from some top national security officials who were reportedly part of the Signal chat: Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.<\/p>\n

What else we\u2019re watching:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n