Billionaire Elon Musk has trained his guns on The Atlantic magazine after the publication reported that its editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, was inadvertently added to a classified group chat discussing US military operations. The chat, which included senior national security officials, covered planned strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.
The Tesla CEO mocked the publication, writing, “Best place to hide a dead body is page 2 of The Atlantic magazine because no one ever goes there.”
He also reposted a satirical piece from The Babylon Bee titled, “4D Chess: Genius Trump Leaks War Plans To ‘The Atlantic’ Where No One Will Ever See Them.”
Best place to hide a dead body is page 2 of The Atlantic magazine, because no one ever goes there https://t.co/10A01hObHO
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 24, 2025
President Donald Trump, when asked about the situation during a White House briefing, distanced himself from the slip-up but was critical of the magazine.
“I don’t know anything about it,” Trump told reporters. “I’m not a big fan of The Atlantic. To me, it’s a magazine that’s going out of business. I think it’s not much of a magazine, but I know nothing about it.”
Pressed further on the nature of the leaks, Trump appeared uninterested, responding, “Having to do with what? What were they talking about?”
Mr Goldberg’s report for The Atlantic revealed that a leaked group chat contained details of planned US strikes on Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, including targets, weapons, and attack sequencing.
The leak happened when National Security Advisor Mike Waltz mistakenly invited Mr Goldberg to a high-level Signal chat. The group included Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. The conversation took place just two days before the planned strikes.
Mr Goldberg said senior officials continued discussing sensitive military details in the chat. Despite the security lapse, the White House and the National Security Council did not deny the report’s authenticity.
On Monday, addressing the reporters, Pete Hegseth didn’t take any responsibility for the security breach and instead attacked Mr Goldberg, insisting “nobody was texting war plans.”
The White House said President Trump “continues to have the utmost confidence in his national security team.”
