Washington — Mike Waltz, President Trump’s former national security adviser, is testifying Tuesday at his Senate confirmation hearing to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, where he is fielding questions about the administration’s foreign policy and his plans for the role if he is confirmed.
The hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee was also the first opportunity for lawmakers to publicly question him about his role in a Signal chat in which top administration officials inadvertently disclosed sensitive details about a military strike in Yemen. In the weeks following the scandal, Democrats said they expected the hearing would be “brutal” for Waltz, but the controversy did not come up until more than an hour into the hearing.
Waltz is testifying alongside Mr. Trump’s nominees to become the U.S. ambassadors to Portugal and Sweden.
The role of UN ambassador — the last of Mr. Trump’s Cabinet to be confirmed — has been vacant for six months, leaving the U.S. without a top representative on a major world stage as several international crises play out.
If confirmed, Waltz would take the position as Mr. Trump’s frustrations increase with Russia over its refusal to end its war in Ukraine and as the U.S. seeks to manage tensions with China and Iran.
The hearing
Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah introduced Waltz as “one of the most well-qualified U.S. ambassador nominees to the United Nations ever,” calling him a “seasoned policy mind” and “skilled negotiator.”
“With Waltz at the helm, the UN will have what I regard as what could and should be its last chance to demonstrate its actual value to the United States,” Lee said.
Republicans used the hearing to criticize the UN, accusing it of being politicized and working against the U.S. and its allies, despite the U.S. being the largest donor. Earlier this year, Mr. Trump ordered a general review of U.S. funding and involvement in the global body.
“You’ve got a heavy lift here,” said Republican Sen. James Risch of Idaho, the chairman of the committee.
Waltz agreed that the UN needs “major” reform, but said there’s “good and meaningful work to be done.”
“We should have one place in the world where everyone can talk, where China, Russia, Europe, the developing world, can come together and resolve conflicts,” he said. “But after 80 years, it’s drifted from its core mission of peacemaking.”
But Democrats argued that a pullback would be at odds with U.S. interests because it would give China more influence.
“China is all too eager to take advantage of our disengagement at the UN and around the world. And while we may not all like what some UN institutions do, if we aren’t at the table, we can’t influence the agenda,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the top Democrat on the committee.
Waltz responded that it was “absolutely critical” for the U.S. to be at the table to counter China’s growing influence.
Waltz was ousted as Mr. Trump’s national security adviser in May, weeks after the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed that he had unexpectedly been added to a group chat on the encrypted messaging app by a user with Waltz’s name. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared sensitive details of an upcoming military operation in the chat, which included others like Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The story ricocheted through Washington, with Democratic lawmakers demanding an investigation into why highly sensitive information was being discussed on a commercially available messaging app, rather than secure government channels.
Administration officials acknowledged the conversation was “sensitive” but denied that the operational details shared in the chat were classified. Waltz admitted that he created the chat, but denied knowing how Goldberg’s contact information got into his phone.
Sources previously told CBS News that Waltz’s nomination for the ambassador role, a high-profile post in New York, was a last-minute decision by the president, and that the Signal controversy was one of the factors that led to his departure from the National Security Council.
Mr. Trump named Waltz as his national security adviser, a position that does not require Senate confirmation, days after the Florida Republican was reelected to a fourth term in Congress. The pick cut into Republicans’ narrow majority in the House and Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, pleaded with Mr. Trump not to poach any more members for administration roles.
The slim majority stalled Mr. Trump’s first choice for U.N. ambassador, Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York. When nominating Waltz, Mr. Trump said he had asked Stefanik to remain in Congress, where she could help advance his legislative agenda.