WASHINGTON, DC – Today, in response to a joint letter from Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI) and Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS), the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DOD OIG) announced that it is launching an “evaluation of the Secretary of Defense’s [Pete Hegseth] reported use of a commercially available messaging application for official business.”

Senator Reed issued the following statement:

“I welcome this independent investigation and urge a thorough review of the incident. My top priority is the safety and security of all American servicemembers, and it is critical that sensitive operational information be handled with utmost discretion. I look forward to reviewing the findings of this investigation.”

“The potentially deadly consequences from Secretary Hegseth's blunder are chilling. Had the intelligence in his chat messages been obtained by the Houthis or another adversary, it would have allowed them to reposition weapons to target our pilots with dangerously accurate intelligence.

“Whether intended or not, Secretary Hegseth endangered the lives of American servicemembers through his recklessness.

“The White House and Mr. Hegseth have tried desperately to mislead the public about this blunder. I cannot overstate how serious of a failure it is. Trump Administration officials have repeatedly claimed, including in testimony before Congress, that there was “no classified information” in this Signal group. But by the Defense Department’s own guidance, Mr. Hegseth’s texts clearly meet the definition of classified material.

“We’ve also learned that the Israelis provided the targeting intelligence used in this airstrike. Our allies and partners are less likely to trust the U.S. with sensitive intelligence in the future now that they’ve seen the reckless behavior of President Trump’s national security team.

“Secretary Hegseth must immediately explain to the Senate Armed Services Committee why he texted apparently classified information that could endanger American servicemembers’ lives on a commercial app with unknown recipients. There is no legitimate basis for him to withhold information from the committee that he claims is unclassified and has already been shared with a journalist.

“I have grave concerns about Secretary Hegseth’s ability to maintain the trust and confidence of U.S. servicemembers and the Commander-in-Chief.”

Department of Defense manual 5200.45 states that “disclosure of significant military plans or intelligence operations” is classified as ‘Secret’ at a minimum. The full manual and classification levels can be viewed here.