Reports indicate that a top advisor to President Trump, Mike Waltz, stored potentially vulnerable information on his personal email account.
The Washington Post reported Tuesday that members of the National Security Council (NSC), including advisor Mike Waltz, used personal Gmail accounts for discussions involving sensitive government information. The report cites obtained emails and confirmations from three individuals familiar with the situation.
This revelation follows an incident where Waltz mistakenly added a journalist to a Signal chat group. This group included figures like Defense Minister Pete Hegseth, Vice President J.D. Vance, and other high-ranking officials who were discussing upcoming US strikes in Yemen.
According to the Post, a senior aide to Waltz used Gmail for “highly technical conversations” with colleagues. These conversations reportedly covered “sensitive military positions and powerful weapons systems relating to an ongoing conflict.”
The Post’s sources claim that Waltz had “potentially exploitable information” sent to his Gmail account. They also stated that he shared portions of his schedule on Signal to arrange meetings and discussions.
Standard protocol requires officials to use secure, government-issued communication channels.
NSC spokesman Brian Hughes told the Post that Waltz “didn’t and wouldn’t send classified information on an open account.” He stated that when Waltz received emails from “legacy contacts,” he always forwarded them to his government email “to ensure compliance with records retention.” Hughes also said that NSC staff are instructed to use “only secure platforms for classified information.”
In a statement to Fox News, Hughes mentioned that he couldn’t confirm the Post’s claims because the journalist “refused to share any part of the document reported.”
Democrats have criticized the Trump administration’s use of the Signal chat app for discussions about the bombing of Houthi positions in Yemen last month. Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief of The Atlantic, reported being added to a group where Hegseth shared the timeline of the March 15 strikes and details of the weapons systems used.
Hegseth and other White House officials have denied sharing any classified information in the chat with Goldberg. President Donald Trump has dismissed calls to dismiss Waltz, stating to NBC News on Saturday: “I don’t fire people because of fake news and because of witch hunts.”