Republican chairperson and ranking Democrats on the Senate Armed Forces Committee have written to the Pentagon’s deputy Watchdog to investigate the scandal about the addition of senior US journalists to the Signal App Group Chat, in which the US airstrikes were shared over the weekend.
He addressed Stephen Stebbins, representative Pentagon inspector, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, committee chairperson and Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island.
The bipartisan letter continued. “The chat is said to contain classification information on sensitive military actions in Yemen. In the truest case, the report raises questions regarding the use of unclassified networks to discuss sensitive and categorized information, sharing such information with those who do not have adequate clearance and do not need to know.”
The Senator continued to create a list of requests, including an assessment of facts and circumstances, and an assessment of “relief taken as a result,” a summary of Pentagon policy regarding violations of such policies and processes, an assessment of whether other departments have different policies on the subject, an assessment of whether classification information was leaked via signalling chat, and an assessment of “addressing potential issues according to potential issues.”
The senator also says he will schedule a briefing from Stebbins.
Stebbins holds the general role of Pentagon inspector in acting abilities as Donald Trump fired his predecessor during such a round of ending in January. This is a highly controversial move by the US President given the conceptually independent status of such officials.
National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who set up a signal chat and added Goldberg, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegses, who shared sensitive military material, including the timing of his upcoming air strikes at Yemen’s Housys, denied attacks on Goldberg and the Atlantic.
So far, it appears Trump doesn’t care that everyone will be plundered by the scandal, the Guardian reports, and no one has offered to step down.
This is a clear disapproval from some Republicans on Capitol Hill, despite high rage from Democrats.
South Dakota Republican Sen. Mike Round told CNN: “We recognize the seriousness of this indiscretion, and we will obtain the report of the Inspector General.
He added: “But I think they’ve been ruined. I think they know they’ve been messed up. I think they’ve learned their lessons too.
Former CIA Director and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta told CNN on Thursday morning that the use of journalists’ signals on the group was a “serious violation” of national security, with the person responsible most to be “punished and fired.” He questioned whether overseas allies felt they could trust the US by sharing sensitive information.
