Donald Trump has responded to newly obtained audio of the former president discussing his retention of secret documents, acknowledging their classified status, and joking about how it was too late to declassify them.
The tape, first obtained by CNN, was allegedly made at Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, in 2021. Its existence and part of its transcript were reported earlier this month by CNN.
The bombshell audio revealed Trump apparently bragged about possessing still-classified military documents about Iran after he left the White House.
In the recording, from a July 2021 meeting at Mr. Trump’s Bedminster golf club, the former president is heard audibly shuffling documents and describing his “big pile of papers” to associates.
“These are the papers,” Mr. Trump says, referring to a military document concerning Iran. “This was done by the military and given to me.”
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Mr. Trump took to Truth Social on Monday night to fume about the tape, railing against “Deranged Special Prosecutor” Jack Smith and baselessly accusing the DOJ and FBI of leaking it.
“The Deranged Special Prosecutor, Jack Smith, working in conjunction with the DOJ & FBI, illegally leaked and “spun” a tape and transcript of me which is actually an exoneration, rather than what they would have you believe. This continuing Witch Hunt is another ELECTION INTERFERENCE Scam. They are cheaters and thugs!” he wrote.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has dismissed a lawsuit from a number of Congressional Democrats who were attempting to get information about the government lease for the Washington, DC hotel previously owned by former President Trump.
