Atlantic editor says: ‘Phone numbers don't just get sucked into other phones’
Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, criticized claims that he had never communicated with national security adviser Mike Waltz prior to being added to a Signal group chat with prominent Trump administration officials. White...
TroibNews 
Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, criticized claims that he had never communicated with national security adviser Mike Waltz prior to being added to a Signal group chat with prominent Trump administration officials.
White House staff have expressed strong condemnation toward Goldberg since it came to light that Waltz had unintentionally added him to a Signal chat regarding military strategies against the Houthis in Yemen.
In a Fox News interview last Tuesday, Waltz referred to Goldberg as “scum” and asserted that he had never encountered the journalist, claiming that Goldberg's phone number had been “sucked in” to his phone through another contact.
Goldberg responded to Waltz's comments during a Sunday appearance on NBC's “Meet the Press,” stating, “Well, this isn't 'The Matrix.' Phone numbers don't just get sucked into other phones.” He added, “Very frequently in journalism, the most obvious explanation is the explanation.”
Goldberg further explained, “My phone number was in his phone because my phone number is in his phone. He’s telling everyone that he's never met me or spoken to me. That's simply not true.”
While Waltz criticized Goldberg and maintained that they had never met, he did take “full responsibility” for including Goldberg in the Signal group chat during the same interview.
Goldberg shared his regret about being compelled to disclose sensitive messages, saying, “The only reason I did that was because they said we were lying about what we had, and they were trying to cover up what was obviously a massive national security breach. Journalists, I hope, operate in the public interest. The public needs to know that they don't take national security seriously, so that's why I put out what I did.”
Sophie Wagner for TROIB News
White House staff have expressed strong condemnation toward Goldberg since it came to light that Waltz had unintentionally added him to a Signal chat regarding military strategies against the Houthis in Yemen.
In a Fox News interview last Tuesday, Waltz referred to Goldberg as “scum” and asserted that he had never encountered the journalist, claiming that Goldberg's phone number had been “sucked in” to his phone through another contact.
Goldberg responded to Waltz's comments during a Sunday appearance on NBC's “Meet the Press,” stating, “Well, this isn't 'The Matrix.' Phone numbers don't just get sucked into other phones.” He added, “Very frequently in journalism, the most obvious explanation is the explanation.”
Goldberg further explained, “My phone number was in his phone because my phone number is in his phone. He’s telling everyone that he's never met me or spoken to me. That's simply not true.”
While Waltz criticized Goldberg and maintained that they had never met, he did take “full responsibility” for including Goldberg in the Signal group chat during the same interview.
Goldberg shared his regret about being compelled to disclose sensitive messages, saying, “The only reason I did that was because they said we were lying about what we had, and they were trying to cover up what was obviously a massive national security breach. Journalists, I hope, operate in the public interest. The public needs to know that they don't take national security seriously, so that's why I put out what I did.”
Sophie Wagner for TROIB News
