Vice President JD Vance is under fire after seemingly downplaying what many consider one of the most significant security lapses in White House history. In the world of national security, there is no room for recklessness. Yet, the VP seemingly treats a major lapse as a minor inconvenience by returning to a leaked chat group discussing the Yemen strike.
Worse, he seemed to mock the gravity of the situation. His reaction demonstrates an unparalleled lack of judgement concerning the security protocols he is sworn to uphold.
New IG Report Reveals VP's 'Dumb' Move
On Thursday, the Defense Department Inspector General released its unclassified findings regarding Secretary Pete Hegseth's use of the messaging app Signal to communicate sensitive details about the March Yemen strike. The attack, dubbed Operation Rough Rider, was the largest US military operation in the Middle East during Trump's presidency.
The new report includes a partial transcript of the chat obtained on 27 March. The conversation about the Yemen attack happened on 15 March. The Atlantic's editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, was accidentally added to the chat group, but he left a day later. However, he leaked the conversation on 24 March, nearly 10 days after the attack.
The inspector general's new report revealed more shocking information. Vice President Vance returned to the group chat a day after Goldberg published his report, seemingly dismissing the issue.
'This chat's kind of dead. Anything going on?' Vance wrote on 25 March, which the Daily Beast considered a 'dumb response' after their conversation leaked.
JD Vance wrote in the leaked Signal group chat: “This chat’s kind of dead. Anything going on?” — Report pic.twitter.com/UGCRrJZrr4
— NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) December 4, 2025
Officials Scramble Over Compromised Conversation
No one responded to Vance's apparent attempt to make fun or make light of the situation. Instead, the officials scramble to secure or obscure their own digital footprints within the compromised group chat.
The following alert showed MAR changing their profile name to MR. Bessent set the disappearing message time to 8 hours. MAR changed his profile name again to SR.
Meanwhile, CIA Director John Ratcliffe also changed their profile to John. The last alert was S M changing their profile name to SM 76.
The IG report ultimately concluded that crucial previous messages had been auto-deleted before officials could preserve them.
Social Media Reacts to Vance's Post-Scandal Joke
A screenshot of the partial transcript went viral on social media. The reactions to VP Vance's return to the compromised Signal group chat ranged from scorn to disbelief.
Many found his tone dismissive, and they called him out for his perceived lack of seriousness concerning national security. Several also mocked Vance after the other members in the group chat ignored him.
'And this is supposedly the 28[th] leader in the clubhouse for POTUS after Trump? The dude being ignored in the chat thread?' one commented.
The entire episode, from the leak conversation to the officials scrambling to change their screen names, was broadly condemned as evidence that the 'entire Trump administration is deeply unserious.' One found the new report hilarious, noting how Vance and the rest 'got leaked again.'
The entire Trump administration is deeply unserious
— Catholic American Socialist (@ThatRedCatholic) December 4, 2025
They got leaked again 🤣🤣
— tony (@tony1445o) December 4, 2025
The entire Trump administration is deeply unserious
— Catholic American Socialist (@ThatRedCatholic) December 4, 2025
Goldberg's Report
On 24 March, over a week after the operation, Goldberg published a report announcing that he was aware of the operation because he was part of a group chat where high-ranking officials discussed the details of the attack, including its 'weapon packages, targets, and timing.'
His announcement raised eyebrows, questioning the national security and why the officials used an unauthorised app to discuss such sensitive information.
