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Tipsheet

The One Thing to Keep in Mind About the Latest Story Involving Pete Hegseth

AP Photo/Virginia Mayo

There is a plot to get rid of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The Signal story didn’t do damage. Trump’s approval rating increased, which even CNN had to reveal, and Hegseth still runs the Pentagon. The deep state tried to ensnare the Trump administration over this little chat on Signal. Top officials in this government-approved encrypted messenger app, including Hegseth and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, discussed anti-Houthi operations. The problem: a staffer accidentally added The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, who claimed top-secret war plans were discussed. 

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No classified information or war plans were divulged. Goldberg was so sure that these were classified documents that he revealed them after declaring he wouldn’t because The Atlantic wanted to show how they were responsible for supposed state secrets, etc. etc.—he did it because he’s a known anti-Trump writer whose credibility shot up his initial story, which was dying on the vine. 

The Wall Street Journal now alleges that Hegseth’s wife was present at meetings where sensitive information was discussed. Who’s the source? Oh, right—it’s anonymous again (via WSJ) [emphasis mine]: 

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who is facing scrutiny over his handling of details of a military strike, brought his wife, a former Fox News producer, to two meetings with foreign military counterparts where sensitive information was discussed, according to multiple people who were present or had knowledge of the discussions. 

One of the meetings, a high-level discussion at the Pentagon on March 6 between Hegseth and U.K. Secretary of Defense John Healey, took place at a sensitive moment for the trans-Atlantic alliance, one day after the U.S. said it had cut off military intelligence sharing with Ukraine. The group that met at the Pentagon, which included Adm. Tony Radakin, the head of the U.K.’s armed forces, discussed the U.S. rationale behind that decision, as well as future military collaboration between the two allies, according to people familiar with the meeting. 

A secretary can invite anyone to meetings with visiting counterparts, but attendee lists are usually carefully limited to those who need to be there and attendees are typically expected to possess security clearances given the delicate nature of the discussions, according to defense officials and people familiar with the meeting. There is often security near the meeting space to keep away uninvited attendees. 

The problem with this story is in the opening paragraph. These sources are notoriously unreliable in trying to manufacture anti-Trump tumult in DC. Trump's team is prepared for it, as are supporters of the president and the general public. For years, the legacy media have manufactured doomsday stories about the president, all of which never came true because they were lies. Let’s wait and see if there’s anything to this story, but I guess it’s another nothing burger. 

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Second, if we’re going to freak out over this, true or not, let’s not forget that Hunter Biden reportedly ran the White House after Joe’s disastrous debate on CNN in June last year, and he also sat in on meetings without a security clearance.

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