US Military Families Angry Over Signal Chat Leak: 'It Erodes Your Trust'

U.S. military families have expressed anger, frustration, and fear following the Signal group chat scandal, and one advocate for military families told Newsweek: "It erodes your trust."

While the Signal leak has been the focus of a political debate on Capitol Hill, for military families it exposes a deeper fear of whether their loved ones' lives are now at risk due to military information being shared by senior Trump officials on a publicly available messaging app.

Sarah Streyder, executive director of Secure Families Initiative—an organization advocating for a Military Families Bill of Rights—spoke with Newsweek about the sentiments she has heard from fellow military family members following the breaking news.

According to Streyder, military families are experiencing: "A range of emotions, from heartbroken, disappointment, pretty angry … it feels like we're being let down by our leaders who are at the bare minimum, supposed to be keeping us safe from unnecessary and preventable harm."

Screenshots taken by The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg of the 'Houthi PC Small Group' group chat—which included the Vice President, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Advisor, the Director of National Intelligence, and head of the CIA—have revealed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared the timing and method of strikes within Yemen.

Veterans and military family members stressed that this information could have put the lives of service members at risk if it had ended up in the wrong hands.

"If you're wondering whether or not this is a big deal, I can confirm that it is," said Streyder. "Leaked war plans aren't just a breach of national security in some impersonal way. They're really a direct threat, both to the safety of service members and for us as military families, those are our parents, our spouses, our kids who now have increased risk and targets on their back, but also to the 70 percent of military families who live off base in civilian communities.

"We are now at risk as well, because our information is always tied up in this sort of thing."

Streyder said that a significant factor in this story is trust. Not only did the Secretary of Defense share details of a war plan on a group chat, but the general public and people serving in the military are now wondering what other group chats may exist, and what other information may be out there, shared accidentally.

"You think of the harm that still might be done by additional fractures within operational security," said Streyder. "It's that fear that erodes your confidence, and it erodes your trust in existing leadership's ability to competently conduct affairs."

Besa Pinchotti, Chief Executive Officer for the National Military Family Association, also told Newsweek of her concern over safety: "While this [was] about a specific and successful mission, the consequences could have been dire. We count on Congress to take this seriously. Service member lives depend on it."

Fear for the safety of loved ones in the military was seconded by a military spouse who spoke to Newsweek on condition of anonymity.

"Both of my parents, my uncles, and grandfather are veterans; my brother, sister, brother-in-law, and husband are current military personnel. I have grown up with full respect to those who serve. I have seen the standards they are held to and expect the leaders to be responsible to those standards and more. These actions are a disregard to their lives and their service," they told Newsweek.

"My husband leaves for deployment in two months, and it genuinely feels like I am sending a human sacrifice to a god I don't believe in. I am terrified in every possible aspect."

Both Pinchotti and Streyder stressed that the military is an apolitical institution and that service members and their families sign up to serve their nation, not a political party.

"What matters is the mission," said Streyder. "And in this case, what should matter is the issue, and the mission and the issue is to both close gaps in terms of intelligence, but also close gaps in terms of family support, and to think of anyone treating that within the framework of a political circus, this is frankly insulting and frustrating.

"We are so accustomed to just rolling up our sleeves and getting down to business, and it's disappointing when we see leaders unwilling to do the same."

The officials in the group chat's unwillingness to admit to wrongdoing also weighs heavily on the military spouse who spoke with Newsweek.

"I'm terrified. We have been saying since the beginning that [Secretary of Defense Pete] Hegseth specifically is unqualified for this position. There are two things that prove this to me in this situation," the spouse said.

"His complete disregard for the safety of the men and women he is using to enact his grossly underprepared plans. And, his inability to admit his mistakes and face the consequences."

The spouse, whose husband is set to be deployed this summer, added: "However, I do not believe Hegseth is the only one to blame in this situation. I believe all parties involved are equally guilty...They should have said 'this is not the correct platform' from the first message."

Streyder also stressed how often military family members are briefed on operational security (OpSec), and the lengths to which family members of American troops go to ensure they do not breach protocol.

"It's extra baffling and a bit insulting," said Streyder. "We [military families], who are not ourselves members of the Department of Defense or Homeland Security, still, as civilians, are expected to abide by operational security and know how to do so and follow those rules."

Streyder added: "Signalgate is a symptom of a bigger problem of service members being thought of casually, and families being thought of and treated as support staff rather than strategic stakeholders."

Investigations into the Signal group chat are ongoing and calls for Pete Hegseth and Mike Waltz to resign are growing among Democratic politicians.

Update 03/27/25, 11:47 a.m. ET: This story was updated to include comment from a military spouse.

Correction 03/27/25 12:14 am ET: This story was updated to correct the name of Secure Families Initiative.