During his CNN appearances this week, Scott Jennings has certainly weighed in on "Signalgate," given how much Democrats and their allies in the media insist on harping on it so much. Conversations about "accountability" took place, and from the Biden-Harris administration's own top aides, which Jennings was having none of.
As fill-in host John Berman asked if an inspector general review over Signalgate would be enough, Neera Tanden, who served as a senior advisor and staff secretary to then-President Joe Biden, insisted it was "absolutely not" enough.
She went on a rant about hearings and holding people accountable, namely Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and questioning how he "can lead." Again, this is a woman who worked very closely for Biden.
"I mean, the military requires accountability. It's the most accountable organization. You were supposed to be accountable to higher ups. Politics isn't supposed to have to do it any--to do with any of this. And the fact that that's happening, that they're just basically saying, nothing to do here, is a big problem, I think, for those who believe in accountability," she ranted, missing the irony to do with all of the foreign policy and national security failures under the administration she served under, especially but not only to do with the Afghanistan withdrawal.
"I think Republicans aren't interested in any lectures on accountability in the military after the Biden administration. I mean, the bar for getting rid of a secretary of defense is apparently pretty high. You can get 13 people killed and go AWOL and not tell the commander- in-chief, and that's not a fireable offense," Jennings aptly added, reminding about not only the 13 U.S. servicemembers killed at Abbey Gate in the August 2021 terrorist attack, but also how then Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was out for cancer treatments without people knowing.
Recommended
Tanden did not take too well to that, as her facial expressions showed. She tried to jump in, but Berman beat her to it, speaking about how "Lloyd Austin had to testify," as if that brought any real accountability than Tanden is now demanding from the Trump administration.
Jennings stressed that he believes Hegseth will testify. He still issued a reminder about the previous failing administration, though. "But these lectures about accountability and national security after letting 10 million people into the country who raped and murdered and committed violent acts and no remorse or accountability," Jennings added, speaking now about the massive failures to do with open borders before Tanden once more cut him off, even laughably claiming that "they closed the borders."
"No more lectures, no more lectures about national security," Jennings aptly shot back at her during the crosstalk.
It's also worth talking about what the Signal group chat of Trump administration officials, where The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg was added, involved. The Trump administration is looking to go after the Houthi rebels swiftly and effectively, after the Biden-Harris administration failed there too, even declassifying them as terrorists.
"Maybe we should go back in time and decide why is it a huge problem? Why is it--why are these rebels going crazy right now? Why is Trump heading to step in? What did the previous commander-in-chief do?" Jennings aptly asked. He also addressed Tanden in particular. "You tell me why the Houthis are running wild over there. You work for the commander-in-chief to let it happen. You tell me," he demanded.
Stunningly, another panelist even had an "at least..." moment in defending the Biden-Harris administration. "Mistakes are not, at least the previous administration used the right device to talk about the secrets," offered CNN's Roy Wood Jr., prompting the response from Jennings of, "you're worried about the devices and not the fact that the rebels harassed ships all during Biden's administration and nothing is done?"
Later on in the segment, as another panelist, likely Tanden, could be heard audibly grumbling, Jennings issued more reminders about the mission. "This was a hugely successful mission. The decision was righteous. The strike was the exact right thing to do, and it was executed flawlessly."
After a commercial break, the panel still continued talking about "Signalgate," with Jennings defending the president for not saying more about it. "If he didn't know and he didn't have the facts, or he hadn't been briefed on it, what is the alternative here? To go out and make something up or to say, 'I don't know, I haven't been told any[thing]?' My understanding is he did know about it. He wasn't on it. Maybe he wasn't even aware what Signal is," Jennings offered. "I mean, it is not inconceivable that the president, when, you know, I didn't see the timestamps on these questions, didn't actually have enough information to comment publicly at the time on any of these matters. It's not out of the ordinary for a president to hold back until they have all the facts or all the things they need to know to make a legitimate comment."
The Biden-Harris administration, during which the president was particularly lacking with his press conferences and the questions he took, with his White House also gaslighting about it, came up once more.
Tanden opened the door easily on that one. Not only did she continue to make faces as Jennings spoke, but she claimed she was concerned about Trump not being shared such information. "I mean, I think this is a deeply kind of disturbing thing on basic information," she said. "On some political issue, I totally understand. I can even understand perhaps plausible deniability about Signal Gate. But I think on national security issues, like issues where soldiers are possibly lost, it is pretty inexcusable that he has not been briefed and he can't speak to it."
That brought Jennings' perhaps best moment. "And what's worse? A president not having all the information he needs to make a legitimate comment, so he holds back in the moment before being ready to make a comment, or, I don't know, willfully lying to the American people about the condition of the president of the United States, which went on for four years in this country by all your colleagues," he argued, prompting even more facial expressions from Tanden.
As Jennings asked his question, making clear it wasn't rhetorical, Tanden just shook her head and repeatedly insisted that "that is totally wrong," laughably raising her voice as she also scoffed.
The White House staff, especially then Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, were particularly shameful in the gaslighting they did. Tanden may have played her own role, though, as she may have been the staffer who signed the record-high amount of pardons under Biden via autopen.
When Jennings pointed out he was not going to be "lectured by the people who lied to the American people about the condition of the president," Tanden reacted by declaring "oh My God" and "no way." She also added "that's outrageous" when Jennings insisted that he's "not going to take it."
Even when Jennings asked her about "the truth" and outright asked her the question that is on the minds of many Americans: "Did the White House tell the truth?" Tanden still loudly complained over him and refused to provide anything substantive.
The rest of the segment continued as Jennings defended Trump for not speaking on an issue he didn't know enough about, while Wood Jr. also lashed out against him for bringing up the Biden-Harris administration as an example of whataboutism.
"You can't keep using that Biden did it, Biden did it, Biden did it," Wood charged, though Jennings was steadfast in being sure that he could, reminding that Biden did it for four years after Trump's first term, and then President Barack Obama did it for eight years following his predecessor, President George W. Bush.
My view on @cnn last night: No more lectures from the condescending Biden regime on military accountability and national security. Done with it. Throw it back in their face and don’t stop. pic.twitter.com/Xo0UBIdhno
— Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) March 28, 2025
Every single day, here at Townhall, we will stand up and FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT against the radical left and deliver the conservative reporting our readers deserve.
Help us continue to the truth about the Trump administration and its major wins. Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member