After only about three months as President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, Mike Waltz found himself caught up in a widespread controversy dubbed Signalgate. The former Republican congressman from Florida is confirmed to be leaving his White House position due to fallout from a scandal involving the use of the Signal messaging app to discuss sensitive information about a planned U.S. military strike in Yemen. Although details surrounding his departure were not fully disclosed as of May 1, Waltz’s participation in the Signal chat has cast a shadow over his tenure since it was first revealed on March 24.
The Signal group chat, which inadvertently became public after reporter Jeffrey Goldberg was mistakenly added, revealed discussions about planned U.S. airstrikes on Iran-backed Houthi sites in Yemen. Waltz, among other officials, was seen responding to news of the airstrikes with emojis of an American flag, fire, and a fist. The leaked information, including weapon details and timing of the strikes, prompted calls from Democrats for resignations.
Waltz took responsibility for the incident when it came to light, acknowledging the mistake and stating that he initiated the group chat. President Trump initially supported Waltz, attributing the mishap to a “lower level” employee. Waltz’s background includes serving as defense policy director in the Pentagon under Secretaries of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates, as well as being a counterterrorism advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney.
This article was written by Kathryn Palmer for USA TODAY, and additional contributions were made by other reporters.
