Duckworth Statement on DoD Inspector General Launching Investigation into Pete Hegseth’s Use of Signal to Discuss Airstrike Plans

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) and U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC)—issued the following statement in response to the Department of Defense (DoD) Acting Inspector General Steven Stebbinsannouncing an investigationinto Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s use of Signal, an unclassified, commercially-available messaging app, to discuss specific details about a U.S. military strike in Yemen:
“Of course, this obvious leak of classified information by the Secretary of Defense himself must be investigated. Not just by the DoD Inspector General, but by the FBI and Congress as well—and I'll keep pushing for accountability from these senior Trump officials who continue to put our troops and national security at risk.”
Since he was first nominated andthroughout his confirmation hearing, Duckworth has made it clear that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is unqualified to lead our men and women in uniform—and after this egregious national security breach that needlessly put the lives of our troops in greater danger, Duckworth hasdemandedthat Hegseth resign or be fired immediately. Earlier this week, Duckworthslammedthe Trump Administration for declaring SignalGate “case-closed” without holding any senior Administration officials responsible.
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