The Trump administration scrambled Tuesday to contain spreading political, diplomatic and intelligence damage from the shocking leak of secret American military attack plans shared by top officials on an unsecure group chat on Signal that included Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg.

As angry lawmakers demanded answers, Donald Trump officials on the Signal chat sought to downplay the significance of the stunning breach by Vice President J.D. Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, National Security Administrator Mike Waltz and others about the recent attack on the Houthis in Yemen.

“My communications were … entirely permissible and lawful and did not include classified material,” CIA Director John Ratcliffe said at a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard refused to confirm her participation in the group chat and repeatedly insisted the information shared on the chat was not classified.

Hegseth trashed Goldberg and claimed he didn’t share any “war plans,” even though other officials confirmed that he shared details of military assets and timing of the attacks, which were deemed a success.

Trump himself denied that the breach amounted to a major violation of security protocols and defended Waltz, who Goldberg says inadvertently added him to the chat group where officials discussed detailed plans for the March 15 attacks on the pro-Iran militia group.

“Michael Waltz has learned a lesson, and he’s a good man,” Trump told NBC News, when asked if he still had confidence in his top national security aide.

Goldberg Tuesday scoffed at the denials and efforts to soft pedal the extent and potential danger of the breach.

“It was so dangerous to kind of release into the wild … of a commercial messaging app … things that are going to happen in the immediate future,” he said. “And some of these things involved … American pilots.”

Democrats and Republicans alike expressed deep concern about the lack of basic security practiced by the senior officials, especially the fact that no one checked the identities of those on the chat.

Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colorado, berated Ratcliffe for allowing the chat to include sensitive military details without verifying whether unauthorized people like Goldberg were included.

“This sloppiness, this incompetence, this disrespect for our intelligence agencies is entirely unacceptable,” Bennet said. “It’s embarrassing. You need to do better.”

“Is this just one more approach to how careless you keep your secrets in this administration?” asked Sen. John Warner, D-Virginia.

Former National Security Adviser John Bolton slammed the officials for dodging simple questions and denying that anyone made any mistakes.

“They’re trying to cover their posteriors,” Bolton, a prominent hawkish conservative, told CNN. “They know there was classified information in that chat (and) I think they’re very nervous.”

Goldberg said he is considering whether to publish all the information disclosed, a position that could be bolstered by the Trump officials claims that there was no classified or damaging information in the chat.

The veteran journalist, who said he was flabbergasted at being added to the group chat in the first place, has said he did not disclose any information about the planned attack in real time.

The Atlantic Monday published his account of what was shared with him on the chat, including remarkable secret discussions among the officials about the attack.

The text chain “contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on pro-Iran Houthi rebels in Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying, and attack sequencing,” Goldberg reported.

The strikes on the group, which have been blamed for attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, began two hours after Goldberg received the details.

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