Why Did Waltz Have Goldberg's Number? -- Digby

[erronis]

https://digbysblog.net/2025/03/26/why-did-walz-have-goldbergs-number/

Mike Waltz looked like he was about to cry in both of his public appearances yesterday, first at the ambassadors meeting where Trump threw the ball to him to explain himself and later on Laura Ingraham. He was dancing as fast as he could to both cover up his massive error and suck up to the boss at the same time. I’m not sure he succeeded.

According to Politico, Trump was not as ok with all this as he pretended. And it’s not because of the classified information. neither was it is unsecured phones. He’s done even worse himself and is probably doing it as we speak. No, he was mad that his nemesis Jeffrey Goldberg was on the chat. And we know who invited him:

Trump was mad — and suspicious — that Waltz had Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg’s number saved in his phone in the first place, according to three people familiar with the situation, who were granted anonymity to discuss private conversations. A fourth person said the president was also particularly perturbed by the embarrassing nature of the episode.

People in know said that just because they smoothed it over it doesn’t mean it’s the end of it:

A second person familiar with the matter said Trump spoke with Waltz multiple times about the Atlantic story on Monday, while a third person said the White House counsel had been looking into it at one point.

…[S]ome people close to the White House argued the incident is likely to leave a lasting mark. Pushing Waltz out now could disturb the relative harmony this administration has seen. “If you let scalps fall off right now — that could set a bad precedent,” another person familiar with the incident said.

That leaves Waltz in a precarious position with the “America First” contingent of the administration and outside allies who would be all too happy to see him removed from office, suspicious of his neoconservative underpinnings.

“The president trusts his team a lot more than he did during his first term. But he is still someone who doesn’t easily forget about mistakes, so just because he’s not getting rid of Waltz or one of the others today, doesn’t mean a day won’t come when a person will sort of run out of rope,” a person close to the White House said.

You know Trump is still wondering how this happened. Goldberg is his most hated enemy journalist because of the “suckers and losers” report (which was true…) The only thing saving Waltz is that Trump doesn’t seem to have a grasp of how Signal works. If he did he would know that it is preposterous that someone else put this reporter on the chat.

According to this, the long knives are out for Waltz anyway for ideological reasons. Let the back-stabbing begin.

Corrected misspelling carried forward from DIgby. Thanks, SheltieLover and Ocelot II!

[sinkingfeeling]

1. I think I read somewhere today that he was saying a staffer did it. Correction: that was TSF.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/25/trump-blames-unnamed-lower-level-staffer-for-waltz-having-reporters-number-00250061

Trump blames unnamed ‘lower level’ staffer for Waltz having reporter’s number

[SheltieLover]

3. Shit rolls downhill...

[Ocelot II]

6. ... gathering mass and momentum.

[SheltieLover]

14. Indeed!

[cbabe]

4. I was waiting for a low level staffer to be thrown under the bus. Or out a window.

[tulipsandroses]

11. Laura Ingram tried to help him out last night on her show. She repeatedly asked him if a staffer put the number in his

phone. He said NO. I was thinking, he's so dumb, he doesn't realize she's trying to give him a lifeline by throwing some unnamed staffer under the bus. He said no and went on talk about sometimes you have a number in your phone and it's not who you think it is.
Dumbass told a more absurd story. He can't go back to saying it was a staffer.

[mr715]

15. Yeah, his idiocy was on full display.

Director of Central Intelligence!

I suspect he didn't want to admit he's not a red-blood independent bossman but relies on "weenies" to handle his shit.

But it is a lose-lose position. Either you are sharing your classified info with a staffer and they set you up, or one or more people in his office are dumb as one of the less shiny minerals.

I think he's dumb and he looks it. Sounds it. Hell, I bet he smells dumb.

[SheltieLover]

2. I believe his name is Waltz. Pls correct so as to not be confused with our Walz.

Tyia!

[erronis]

7. Thank you. I should have been a better copy editor!!!

[SheltieLover]

12. Yw. I make plenty of typos too.

[erronis]

13. As I said, I didn't do diligence when copying from the Digby blog.

Copy and paste without my eyeballs/brain doing their job.

Thx!

[Ocelot II]

5. Waltz.

[erronis]

8. Corrected. Thank you!

[Henry203]

9. Here is a solution for these morons

Don’t keep any numbers or contacts on your phone. That is what I do. I have had the ability to remember numbers all my life and I have read by memorizing your numbers it keeps your brain working. They always brag how smart they are. Well use your brain.

[bucolic_frolic]

10. Trump promised to stop all leaks

Once all information is public there will be nothing more to leak. Mission accomplished.