Every second administration has a controversy that looms over it, and for the Trump Administration, it could be “Signalgate.” As the controversy casts a shadow over the incumbent presidency, lawmakers on Capitol Hill weighed in on whether journalists have an ethical responsibility to withhold classified information when it could pose a threat to national security.
The debate centers on the tension between press freedom and national security obligations, and in an exclusive interview with Texas Politics, members of Congress offered differing views on how journalists should respond to the tension.
Texas Rep. Jake Ellzey (R), a former Navy pilot, emphasized the duty that Americans have, including journalists, to protect sensitive information.
“If they are aware of its classification and its sensitivity to the national security of the United States — most importantly the American lives and service members’ lives — I think becoming aware of it and reporting it to the authorities is a patriotic duty,” he said. “I think there’s a responsibility for any American citizen to not release that into the public domain.”
Florida Rep. Aaron Bean (R), co-Chair of the DOGE Caucus, offered a succinct but telling remark on the issue, commenting, “I think if you love America, you certainly put America First.”
In contrast, Florida Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D) shared a more nuanced response, pointing to the need for truth when government officials mislead the public.
“Obviously we gotta be able to make sure that national secrets and classified information doesn’t get out into the domain,” he commented. “But if we have people within the administration… saying ‘oh, that’s not true,’ or ‘it’s inaccurate,’… then I think there’s an obligation to come out to prove that it did happen.”
Rep. Moskowitz added that the release of the controversial information was ultimately prompted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s assurance that the material in question was not classified.
“Hopefully next time… if someone makes a mistake, they then don’t come out and basically force the release of the information,” he concluded.
