It appears that Pete Hegseth's glowing response to the review board's report that the Secretary of Defense directly threatened American troops is just a lie and a claim that he didn't do it.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell didn't even try to distort the poll results on Wednesday. inspector general report on major scandal earlier this year when Hegseth sent highly sensitive information into an unsecured Signal group chat.
“This Inspector General audit is a COMPLETE vindication of Secretary Hegseth @PeteHegseth. and proves what we knew all along: no classified information was revealed. This matter has been resolved and the case is closed,” Parnell said in a statement, according to a Trump associate. Laura Loomer.
Sources previously told CNN that Hegseth sent messages detailing material that was marked classified at the time. One message from Hegseth—“This is DEFINITELY when the first bombs fall”—seemed clearly classified. But the military leader argued that he had the right to unilaterally declassify the information in question, although no documentation appears to exist that this actually happened.
A classified version of the Signalgate inspector general's report was sent to Congress on Tuesday evening, which found that Hegseth should not have used the app in the first place. Four sources familiar with the report told CNN that Hegseth risked compromising sensitive military information and could potentially jeopardize troops and mission objectives.
A declassified version of the report is expected to be made public on Thursday.
