Governor Illinois sought guarantees from the Chief of Staff of the Joint Staff after the signal incident
Governor Illinois JB Pritzker asked the Chief of Staff to provide guarantees to all states and their governors about specific steps taken to protect national security after the use of the new signal message application by President Donald Trump’s administration to discuss sensitive foreign policy plans.
The Democratic Governor sent a letter on Monday to the Acting Chief of Chief of Staff Christopher Grady – obtained exclusively by ABC News – requested that he intervened on the name of the safety of service members.
Governor Illinois JB Pritzker spoke at the Center for American Progress on March 18, 2025, in Washington, DC
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Pritzker said he reached out because he “lost confidence” in the ability of the Defense Secretary of Pete Hegseth, one of the key members of the signal incident, to “maintain the integrity of our national defense operations.”
“I reach you as a military officer with the highest rank of our country because I have lost confidence in the ability of the Secretary of Defense to maintain safe service members and maintain the integrity of our national defense operations,” Pritzker wrote in the letter.
The Governor’s Office did not comment on the letter in response to the request of ABC News.
“Please detailed the right steps to be taken by the federal government to govern in dangerous and terrible behavior that endangers national security, and the steps needed to ensure that the channels, methods, and protocols are appropriate and safe to use to protect confidential information and safe communication,” Pritzker was also asked.
He said he was looking for this information while remembering nearly 13,000 military personnel who served in the National Guards Illinois.
“The carelessness of the secretary not only puts the lives of pilots who execute operations in risk, but also place the lives of troops throughout the world – including services from the National Guard Illinois,” Pritzker wrote.
“At present, more than 1,700 national guards Illinois are deployed to the federal active task service with the direction of the president, so I can’t stand silent because their lives are risky,” he added.
Pritzker, who has been at the forefront in pushing back against Trump and his policies among Democrats throughout the country, recently returned from a four-day trip to Mexico which was intended to increase the economic partnership between it and Illinois.
ABC News has contacted the Grady office to respond to Pritzker’s letter.
