U.S. lawmakers call for Signal chat probe, as Justice Department appears uninterested

The top Republican and Democrat on a Senate congressional panel have sent a letter to the inspector general at the Department of Defence to formally request an investigation into how top Trump national security officials used Signal to discuss military strikes.

Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the Republican chair of the committee, along with Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat, signed the letter that asks for an inquiry into the potential “use of unclassified networks to discuss sensitive and classified information, as well as the the sharing of such information with those who do not have proper clearance and need to know.”

Their move comes as the nation’s top law enforcement officials have not committed to publicly disclosing any inquiries into the matter.

FBI Director Kash Patel, who was not part of a Signal chat in which Donald Trump administration national security officials discussed detailed attack plans, wouldn’t comment as to whether the FBI is opening a probe during two days of Capitol Hill hearings earlier this week.

He testified that he had not personally reviewed the text messages that were inadvertently shared with Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic who was mistakenly included on an unclassified Signal chat.

The Justice Department has broad discretion to open an investigation, though it remains unclear whether Attorney General Pam Bondi would authorize such an inquiry. 

‘A very successful mission’

Trump administration officials insist that the details shared were not classified, though the Espionage Act technically criminalizes the mishandling of any information deemed to be closely held national defence information, even if it’s not classified.

Bondi, at a news conference in Virginia on Thursday to hail the arrest of a gang leader, struck a defiant tone when asked by a reporter if the department was involved at this point.

“First, it was sensitive information — not classified — an inadvertently released,” she said. “What we should be talking about is, it was a very successful mission. Our world is safer because of that mission.”

Bondi then mentioned investigations launched months and years ago into the handling of classified material concerning Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton, respectively. No criminal charges resulted from those inquiries.

Bondi did not mention in her answer that Trump faced Espionage Act charges in a criminal indictment before he was re-elected as president. Sensitive documents were allegedly found at Florida and New Jersey properties he owned, but the case was dismissed and, as that ruling was set to be appealed, Trump won the Nov. 5, 2024, election, effectively quashing the matter.

Trump this week insisted “it’s not really an FBI thing,” for the agency to get involved in such a matter, though the reality is that the FBI and Justice Department for decades have been responsible for enforcing Espionage Act statutes governing the mishandling — whether intentional or negligent — of national defence information.

That list includes the case of David Petraeus, the former CIA director who was sentenced in 2015 to two years’ probation for disclosing classified information to a biographer with whom he was having an extramarital affair.

Democrats have called on Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth to resign for relaying information about U.S. weapons and the Houthi aistrikes via Signal, a commercially available app that is not approved by the federal government for handling classified material.

They’ve also expressed concerns that, under officials nominated by Trump — who as a candidate complained about what he believed was the weaponization of the Justice Department — accountability will not be pursued.

‘Own it,’ Republican senator says

In addition to protesting that the information was not classified, several Trump officials have taken turns impugning the motives and credibility of Goldberg, the journalist.

Trump, in comments on Wednesday, did not appear to understand the functionality of Signal and seemed to suggest the app could have malfunctioned.

Even some Republicans expressed frustration to reporters at the messaging coming from the White House.

“Own it, it happened, and say it will never happen again,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota.

In their letter, Wicker and Reed want Steven Stebbins, the acting inspector general at the Department of Defence, to:

• Account for what was communicated and any actions to follow up on the communication.
• Assess the Pentagon’s policies for sharing sensitive and classified information, as well as its policies for classification and declassification.
• Identify any discrepancies in the classification policies between the White House, Pentagon, intelligence community and other agencies.
• Evaluate whether anyone transferred classified information on Signal.
• Make recommendations to address any problems identified.

Concerns about civilian death toll

The strikes against the Iran-backed Houthis began March 15 and continue.

Trump’s whereabouts as the Signal chat was taking place, and in the hours preceding it, are not yet clear.

The U.K.-based group Airwars says it is likely that at least five U.S. strikes hurt or killed civilians, based on videos and photos from the site, Houthi statements and other details. The Signal chat makes reference to a building in which a “girlfriend” of a high-valued target resided.

The U.S. military has not acknowledged any civilian casualties since the strikes began over a week ago. It declined to answer questions regarding possible civilian casualties, but said the “Houthis continue to communicate lies and disinformation.”

The overall death toll from the attacks is 57, according to the Houthis. 

The Trump administration is allowing Mideast-based U.S. forces to launch offensive strikes at will, rather than having the White House sign off on each attack as under former president Joe Biden.

WATCH | Democrat says chat leak could’ve had consequences for U.S. forces: 

U.S. lucky not to be ‘mourning dead pilots now,’ Democrat says of Signal chat controversy

Colorado congressman Jim Himes says chat on Houthi airstrikes accidentally leaked to journalist could have easily been intercepted by U.S. rivals.

The Trump administration promised a tougher stance against Yemen’s Houthi rebels, and its new airstrike campaign appears to be more intense and more extensive, according to an Associated Press review of the operation.

The Houthis targeted over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two and killing four sailors during their campaign from November 2023. The campaign occurred after Israel launched a war in Gaza, stemming from deadly attacks on Oct. 7, 2023 led by Hamas, who are designated a terrorist group by several Western countries.

The Houthis have not acknowledged any losses in their leadership from recent airstrikes.

On Thursday, they claimed responsibility for two long-range missiles into Israel.

Air-raid sirens were heard in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, central Israel and the occupied West Bank, with local media reporting
fragments fell in several places. Israel’s military said the missiles were intercepted, and there were no reports of injuries.