Signalgate: This time is different

“Shocking”, “amateurish”, “clown show”, “absolutely reckless”, “🤦”. The Signalgate revelations don’t stop.

Detractors of President Donald Trump’s administration are gleefully pointing out how incompetent it is to have added a journalist to a group chat for texting on military plans – as indeed it is.

Critics delight in every exaggeration, every lie, every comment that is outrageous or hurtful to old alliances. How long can this go on? Surely it will have a breaking point?

If it were politics as normal, then someone should by now have fallen on their iPhone or been forced out.

Trump must fear the political blowblack of such an apparent display of ineptitude and the chatter amplifying an image of incompetence?

But that’s hasn’t happened. Learning from that can tell us more than the texts themselves.

Compromising texts

Firstly, was anything really compromised in the Signalgate texts? No. It’s stupid to have added someone to the chat without thinking but could or would they have been in touch with the Houthis in the timeframe required? Realistically, no. Not too many people have the Houthis on speed dial.

Do the texts show chaos in the internal workings? Also not really. Cavalierness, yes, but in fact, the texts show a general display of unity towards decisive action and with a certain amount of discussion which indicates that opposing views do have space in the inner circle.

Who cares about Europe?

Did we learn from Signalgate that the administration has it in for the Europeans and thinks they are weak? Well, we definitely did not hear it here first. Vice President J.D. Vance has said this openly. If anything , the texts possibly showed that the administration actually does still think about Europe a bit.

The most important message of Signalgate and its aftermath is “we don’t care”.

We don’t care what you think or what you say. We don’t care if you think we’re telling the truth. Your commentary and sniping is meaningless.

The rules of the game have changed. It’s about power: our power, American power.

It’s not about being right or truthful or moral or about maintaining appearances of being those things. It’s not about cultivating relationships with allies or influencers. It’s not about playing the game as it has been played – either on the domestic stage or in the diplomatic arena.

That is hardly a new learning point either. But in all the scornful commentary, those commentators may need to understand that they are talking to each other.