Trump backs his team after war plans leak: 'Michael Waltz has learned a lesson'

Donald Trump came to the defense of National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who was left at the center of controversy over the war plans shared with a reporter for The Atlantic. "Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man," the president said in phone conversation with NBC.

The magazine's editor, Jeffrey Goldberg, recounted in an article that he had been added to a Signal social networking group where senior administration officials discussed an impending operation in Yemen. In that piece, Goldberg explained that he had been included by a user with the name Mike Waltz. Trump said it had not been his advisor, but "one of Michael’s people on the phone."

The Republican leader also stressed that the presence of the reporter in the chat group had had "no impact at all." He also stated that it had been "the only glitch in two months, and it turned out not to be a serious one," and remarked that he remained confident in his team.

The president's comments come amid a flurry of Democratic criticism, with some of the party's most prominent figures, such as Nancy Pelosi, demanding that those responsible be held accountable. Several Republican lawmakers called to strengthen communications security.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, one of the members of the chat, assured that "nobody was texting war plans."