The Trump Administration is once again under legal fire—this time over a so-called “Signalgate” scandal involving top national security officials and their use of encrypted messaging app Signal to discuss classified military operations targeting Iran-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen.
The lawsuit was filed by National Security Counselors, a far-left nonprofit tied to Deep State attorney Mark Zaid and the infamous Lawfare blog. The group is demanding three months of private messages from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance, and others.
What Is “Signalgate”?
The controversy erupted when The Atlantic’s anti-Trump editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg claimed he was accidentally added to a Signal chat named “Houthi PC small group.” In the chat, top Trump officials allegedly discussed imminent strikes on Houthi positions in Yemen.
The chat was reportedly set to auto-delete messages after one week, raising red flags among left-wing watchdogs who immediately called for investigations, despite the Biden administration using the same app throughout their tenure without controversy.
Lawsuit Seeks All Signal Chats – Even Personal
The lawsuit demands:
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All Signal messages exchanged by the officials over the past three months
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All communications, regardless of sender or recipient
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Personal Signal chats, including those with family members and attorneys
The move marks a severe escalation in legal warfare by progressive groups seeking to criminalize routine communication by Trump officials—even on encrypted apps used across both political parties.
Hegseth Targeted for Using Secure Communication
Secretary Hegseth, already under media fire for his unapologetic America First defense doctrine, is now being sued for allegedly discussing classified information in private, encrypted conversations.
Leftist litigation group American Oversight has also filed a separate lawsuit targeting John Ratcliffe, Tulsi Gabbard, and Hegseth, claiming their use of Signal violates the Presidential Records Act—despite no such outrage when Biden officials used similar channels.
“When news first broke about Signalgate, the first question wasn’t ‘How did this happen?’ It was ‘How often?’” said Kel McClanahan, executive director of National Security Counselors, in a clearly partisan statement aimed at fueling suspicion.
A Weaponized Legal Attack on Trump’s Inner Circle
The lawsuits are not about transparency—they’re about control. These activist groups are leveraging public records laws as a political weapon to:
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Discredit Trump’s national security team
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Expose personal and classified conversations
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Intimidate conservative leaders ahead of the 2026 elections
It’s a classic Lawfare strategy: flood the zone with litigation to bog down the most effective figures in Trump’s second-term cabinet.
Double Standard in Full View
It’s important to note: the Biden White House also used Signal, but received no lawsuits, no media hysteria, and no legal scrutiny. The outrage appears selective and strategically timed to coincide with growing Trump momentum.
What Happens Next
As this lawsuit moves forward, it could trigger constitutional battles over executive privilege, digital privacy, and the limits of public transparency. If successful, this could set a dangerous precedent—exposing all encrypted communications of U.S. officials to activist lawsuits under the guise of accountability.
The case is a clear warning shot to Trump’s national security cabinet: the lawfare state is alive and weaponized. And the fight for 2026 has already begun.