CIA Director Ratcliffe hits back on Dem senator's group chat allegations: 'I didn't say any of those things'

The exchange between Ratcliffe and Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., happened Tuesday morning during the Senate Intelligence Committee's annual "Threats to the Homeland" hearing. 

The news was first reported by Golberg Monday, in a first-person account that sent shockwaves throughout Washington, D.C. 

Bennet asked Ratcliffe if it was his view that there was nothing wrong with the Signal thread in question, and whether he shared the view of Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard that the chat in question did not include any targeting information or battle sequence.

Bennet said this was in Ratcliffe's testimony, before noting, "I'm a little staggered that that is your view, Director Ratcliffe."

"Does the CIA have any rules about [the] handling of classified information?" he asked. "Yes or no?"

"Yes," Ratcliffe responded. He added that he had not previously heard of Goldberg, though he acknowledged "clearly he was added" to the Signal thread by someone in the group.

"I don't know how he was added," Ratcliffe said, before Bennet interrupted, asking, "You don't know that the president's national security advisor invited him to join the signal thread," referring to national security advisor Mike Waltz. 

"Everybody in America knows," Bennet said. 

Ratcliffe said he does not use the app to share classified information, or to share targeting information.

"And your testimony as the director of the CIA, is that it's totally appropriate" to conduct conversations like this on Signal, Bennet asked. "Is it appropriate?"

Ratcliffe began to respond, saying "No, that is not what I-" before the Democratic senator cut him off. 

He then tried again, challenging Bennet: "Did I say it was? When did I use the word 'appropriate'?'"

"Clearly, 'nothing to see here,' is what your testimony is," Bennet said. "It was just a normal day at the CIA where we chat about this kind of stuff over Signal. In fact, it's so normal that the last administration left it here for us.' That's your testimony today."

"No, that is not my testimony," Ratcliffe fired back. "I didn't say any of those things that you just related, senator."

The back-and-forth wrapped with a blistering remand from Bennet, who told Ratcliffe of the Signal chat: "This sloppiness, this incompetence, this disrespect for our intelligence agencies and the personnel who work for them is entirely unacceptable. It's an embarrassment," he said. "You need to do better. You need to do better." 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt previously attempted to brush off the Signal chat, telling reporters Monday that the attacks on the Houthis discussed in the group chat "have been highly successful and effective." 

"President Trump continues to have the utmost confidence in his national security team, including national security advisor Mike Waltz," she said.