Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee today increased their pressure on the Trump administration, challenging top officials over leaked discussions of military planning against the Yemen-based Houthis.

The controversy centres on discussions on the Signal messaging app between 17 officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, which were leaked to The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg. On Tuesday, following the Trump administration’s insistence that the chat thread included no classified information, Goldberg published more quotations from the thread pertaining to military operations against the Houthis.

This included classified information about the specific times and general targets of US strikes against Houthi forces. The thread also contained classified details concerning the forces employed.

The contention that the thread included classified information is not really a debatable point. Every single active or former military or intelligence officer I have spoken to has had no doubts that the specific military planning and operational elements of the thread and the policy discussions were classified. The debate begins and ends with the fact that the discussions involved the timing of operations by manned aircraft (the F-18 fighter jets) against an enemy force which possesses anti-air capabilities. The details in the chat would have meant a credible threat to US naval aviator lives had the Houthis learned of the impending attack.

It also bears note that both China and Russia have previously shared intelligence with the Houthis, and have the means of intercepting US communications. Indeed, Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff was in Moscow when the thread was ongoing (he has since claimed he was using a secure phone). Gabbard was also overseas.

It’s certainly true that there were some silly Democratic attack lines. One such example came when Rep. Jimmy Gomez asked Gabbard and John Ratcliffe whether Hegseth was drunk when he established the thread. But other Democrats scored more pointed hits. Rep. Joaquin Castro, for example, was successful in solemnly observing that the notion the thread did not include classified information is absurd. Castro is a performer with higher political ambitions, but his argument stands on its own merits here.

Still, it was Rep. Jason Crow who delivered Democrats their strongest moment. A former Special Operations infantry officer and combat veteran, Crow outlined the thread on a board. He then read a quote from the text chain stating that “We are a go for mission launch.” He asked Gabbard: “Does that indicate to you that there is about to be a military operation?” Gabbard responded: “Yes.” Detailing guidance from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence that any information which gives an “indication or advanced warning” of imminent US attack should be classified as top secret, he extracted an admission from Gabbard that she was aware of this guidance. When he asked whether the Houthis have shown an ability to shoot down US aircraft and have successfully downed US drones, Gabbard responded positively to both points.

Crow then showed the Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Gen. Jeffrey Kruse two photos of SA-3 and SA-6 air defence systems. Kruse, somewhat embarrassingly for an Air Force intelligence officer, could not identify those systems but admitted that the Houthis have them in their possession. The unmistakable takeaway from Crow’s cross-examination is that the thread did indeed include classified information that the Trump administration cannot credibly claim was not classified — and that US naval aviator lives would have been at risk had the thread entered their possession.

Building on Crow’s arguments, Rep. Mike Quigley also made the more obvious point that had the Houthis known about the thread’s content they would have at least been able to “duck”. His point: the thread’s exposure would have allowed the Houthis to take measures to protect themselves from what they would have known was an imminent attack.

The Trump administration has no winning argument here. It should accept that a serious mistake was made and drop the patently ludicrous contention that no classified information was jeopardised. Had more junior military or intelligence officials been responsible for sharing this information to a journalist, there is no question that they would be suspended and under criminal investigation.

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Tom Rogan is a national security writer at the Washington Examiner

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