US President Donald Trump has lost two key advisors, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and his deputy Alex Wong, as they leave their posts amid the fallout from the Signalgate group chat scandal. The controversy erupted in March when it was revealed that Waltz had shared sensitive national security plans with a small group of officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
The group chat, which included the editor of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, discussed military strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen. Waltz initially claimed he “never met” Goldberg but was caught out after a photo of the group chat showed him adding the journalist to the group before divulging the plan.
In response to the scandal, Waltz and the White House launched a smear campaign against Goldberg, with Waltz claiming that the journalist had hacked into his contact list. However, it has since emerged that Goldberg was added to the list by someone else and was only given access after Waltz’s meeting with him.
Despite the controversy, Trump refused to call for Waltz’s resignation, instead praising his leadership. The National Security Adviser had been under pressure from within the White House to step down, but it appears that enough time has passed since the incident for the administration to reframe the resignation as a reorganization.
The departures of Waltz and Wong come as part of a broader shake-up at the National Security Council, which is reportedly looking to rebuild trust with Congress after a series of scandals. The resignations are likely to be seen as a bid by Trump to restore his reputation and address growing concerns about the handling of sensitive information within the White House.
Source: https://www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/breaking-trumps-national-security-adviser-34966395