Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he knew "exactly" what he was doing after a journalist was mistakenly added to a group chat with senior officials. (REUTERS/Yves Herman)
Speaking in Hawaii Tuesday, Hegseth said the strikes against the Houthis that night were "devastatingly effective."
"I’m incredibly proud of the courage and skill of the troops. And they are ongoing and continue to be devastatingly effective," he said. "The last place I would want to be right now is a Houthi in Yemen who wants to disrupt freedom of navigation, so the skill and courage of our troops is on full display."
"It’s a complete opposite approach from the fecklessness of the Biden administration," he continued.
The secretary also repeated his claims that "nobody was texting war plans," pushing back on Goldberg's assertion.
"As I also stated yesterday, nobody’s texting war plans, and that’s all I have to say about that," Hegseth said.
Pressed by a reporter about whether he regrets leaking information in the Signal chat that could have put the lives of U.S. troops at risk, Hegseth claimed he has everything under control.
"Nobody’s texting war plans," he reiterated. "I know exactly what I’m doing, exactly what we’re directing, and I’m really proud of what we accomplished, the successful missions that night and going forward."
Goldberg reported that 18 people were listed in the Signal group, including Hegseth, Waltz, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
TRUMP NOT PLANNING TO FIRE WALTZ AFTER NATIONAL SECURITY TEXT CHAIN LEAK
The article said 18 people were listed in the Signal group, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
The Signal chat has been panned as a massive breach of national security, and many have noted that senior officials are not supposed to discuss detailed military plans outside special secure facilities or protected government communications networks.
Watchdog group American Oversight has sued Hegseth and other officials who were in the group chat, arguing that they failed to meet their obligations under the Federal Records Act by using Signal to communicate and plan active military operations.
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Also on Tuesday, amid scrutiny over the Signal chat, Hegseth participated in some physical training with Navy SEALs.
"Kicked off the day alongside the warriors of SDVT-1 at @JointBasePHH," he wrote on X. "These SEALs are the tip of the spear, masters of stealth, endurance, and lethality. America’s enemies fear them—our allies trust them. Proud to spend time with America’s best."
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/hegseth-fends-off-reporters-questions-about-signal-chat-leak-i-know-exactly-what-im-doing