Axios PM

March 24, 2025
Good Monday afternoon. Today's newsletter, edited by Sam Baker, is 698 words, a 3-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for copy editing.
1 big thing: The editor in the group chat

President Trump's national security adviser accidentally added the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic to a group text in which top officials debated highly sensitive plans for bombing Yemen, the magazine reported today.
- The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg said he was added to a Signal thread earlier this month that included Vice President Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, along with other officials.
📱Why it matters: The breach exposed classified information and private deliberations among some of the nation's highest-ranking officials.
- The U.S. government doesn't permit the use of Signal to transmit classified information.
NSC spokesperson Brian Hughes said in a statement: "At this time, the message thread that was reported appears to be authentic, and we are reviewing how an inadvertent number was added to the chain."
- "The thread is a demonstration of the deep and thoughtful policy coordination between senior officials," Hughes added. "The ongoing success of the Houthi operation demonstrates that there were no threats to our servicemembers or our national security,"
🌎 The intrigue: The Atlantic article is headlined, "The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans." It reports Vance told the group as momentum built for a strike in Yemen: "I think we are making a mistake. ... There is a real risk that the public doesn't understand this or why it's necessary. ... I just hate bailing Europe out again."
- The Atlantic notes that the administration contends America's European allies benefit from U.S. Navy protection of international shipping lanes.
- Hegseth wrote back: "I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It's PATHETIC."
Trump told reporters when asked about the story: "I know nothing about it."
- Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.), a member of the Armed Services Committee, said: "This is an outrageous national security breach and heads should roll."
2. 😡 Dems' Tea Party moment
Democrats on Capitol Hill are increasingly nervous about primaries from younger, angrier and more liberal challengers.
- "The people that have been voting ... with Republicans on these messaging bills are people that could get primaried," a senior House Democrat told Axios' Andrew Solender.
- That Democrat said a colleague called them after a recent town hall meeting crying and saying, "They hate us. They hate us."
🗳️ Kat Abughazaleh, a popular 26-year-old progressive influencer, announced today that she's running for the seat Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill) has held for 26 years.
- "What if we didn't suck?" Abughazaleh said in her announcement video, which quickly went viral.
- Schakowsky hasn't said yet whether she plans to run again.
🫖 "The level of exasperation is comparable for sure" to the Tea Party revolt that took over the GOP, "even if the issues and policies are very different," said Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.).
3. Catch me up
- 🧬 23andMe filed for bankruptcy today, and its CEO — who is trying to take the company private — stepped down. It has struggled for years with privacy concerns and low profits. What it means for your data.
- ⚖️ Chris LaCivita, a senior political adviser to President Trump, filed a defamation suit against The Daily Beast over an article that originally asserted LaCivita had made $22 million off the Trump campaign. The Daily Beast later corrected that figure. LaCivita has said the vast majority of the money paid for advertising. The Daily Beast said it "stands by its reporting." Go deeper.
- 🚫 U.S. District Judge James Boasberg left in place a temporary order limiting the Trump administration's deportation of Venezuelan immigrants. People who deny that they are members of the Tren de Aragua gang must have a chance to make that case before they're deported, he said. Go deeper.
4. 🏀 Men's Sweet 16 is set


The SEC has seven teams in this year's Sweet Sixteen — a new record for any one conference.
- Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, Ole Miss and Tennessee are all in the mix.
The SEC also set the record for most teams in the tournament, with 14. And only two SEC teams — Kentucky and Tennessee — play each other in the Sweet 16, so the conference's historic dominance is poised to continue.
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