The White House National Security Council (NSC) spokesperson stated on Tuesday (April 1st) that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz had received work-related emails on his personal Gmail account, but had “never” sent any classified information through this insecure platform.
White House NSC spokesperson Brian Hughes clarified the content reported by The Washington Post on Tuesday. He told Fox News, “Let me reiterate, since January 20th, National Security Advisor Waltz has received some emails and calendar invitations from old contacts sent to his personal email account, which were also copied (CC) to his government (email) account to ensure compliance with record preservation requirements.”
“He has never sent classified materials through his personal email account or any insecure platform,” Hughes added.
Hughes also mentioned that he could not verify The Washington Post’s claims because the media outlet “refused to share any part of the reported documents.”
He further stated, “Any letters containing classified materials must be sent through secure channels, which is also communicated to all National Security Council staff. It is also clearly stated to NSC personnel that non-government letters must be recorded and retained to comply with record-keeping requirements.”
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that one of Waltz’s senior assistants used Gmail “to engage in highly technical discussions with colleagues in other government agencies, involving sensitive military positions related to ongoing conflicts and powerful weapon systems.”
This report comes at a time when the incident of Trump administration senior officials discussing military actions in a Signal group chat has yet to fully settle. According to Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, he was inadvertently added to a Signal chat group containing potential confidential information, involving so-called “war plans” against the Houthi rebels in Yemen and several Cabinet members of the Trump administration.
Trump, the White House, and senior government officials have insisted that the sensitive information discussed in the Signal group chat was not classified. Attorney General Pam Bondi explicitly stated that she does not intend to investigate the incident.
The White House stated on Monday that Trump continues to trust Waltz and considers the Signal group chat incident closed. White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt declined to disclose details of the government’s review of the incident but told reporters that measures have been taken to ensure such incidents do not happen again.