CNN broke bombshell reporting in the early hours of this morning, publishing a damning audio recording that hears disgraced former US President Donald J. Trump openly sharing top-secret, highly-classified government documents that he stole from the White House with biographers during a July 2021 meeting at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club.
In the damning recording, Donald Trump is heard admitting that he was holding a classified Pentagon document containing intel about a potential US attack against Iran that he stole from the White House upon the end of his presidency.
“These are the papers,” the ex-president is heard saying in the audio recording released by CNN, referencing what he indicated was a Pentagon document containing secret intel containing attack plans, while actively discussing those classified, confidential attack plans with biographers.
The former president can be heard cracking jokes and laughing with his aides, talking about former Sec. and 2016 opponent Hilary Clinton, as Trump declared that he would “lock her up” for having classified intel on her home email server.
“Hillary would print that out all the time, you know. Her private emails,” a Trump staffer can be heard saying at one point in the recording.
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Trump scrambled to Fox News following the bombshell release of the damning audio to defend himself and once again declare his innocence, dubbing the entire development as fake news: “There was no document. That was a massive amount of papers and everything else talking about Iran and other things. And it may have been held up or may not, but that was not a document. I didn’t have a document, per se. There was nothing to declassify. These were newspaper stories, magazine stories, and articles.”
Legal experts across the nation aren’t buying Trump’s bullshit story for a second.
MSNBC legal analyst Bradly Moss:
This wasn’t newspaper articles. He has the document right there. He is talking about how DoD presented it to him. pic.twitter.com/hvE34JLtiU
— Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) June 27, 2023
Legal analyst Tristan Snell:
BREAKING: CNN has the Trump tape where he bragged about and showed off a classified battle plan for invading Iran — and that he KNEW it was classified and he shouldn’t have it.
This is like the Access Hollywood tape, except here Trump was assaulting America’s national security.
— Tristan Snell (@TristanSnell) June 27, 2023
Former DoD special counsel, law professor, and co-Editor-in-Chief of Just Security, Ryan Goodman:
Listen for yourself.👇
Key evidence for the prosecution in the trial of Donald J Trump.
The defendant in his own words — essentially narrating his crime.
“Exclusive: CNN obtains the tape of Trump’s 2021 conversation about classified documents”https://t.co/E976swBC8r pic.twitter.com/rMQA0LKWJB
— Ryan Goodman (@rgoodlaw) June 27, 2023
LA Times legal analyst Harry Litman:
Remember, we already knew that the August 11 Bedminster tape was instrumental in the government’s decision to charge Trump in a document’s case. Now that we hear it, it’s more obvious why that was.
— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) June 27, 2023
The tape — which the jury will hear whether or not Trump testifies — is devastating. He says “this is what DoD gave me.” and “I should have declassified it then now I can’t.” and “this is him[Milley.”] & “it is like highly confidential and secret” to the guffaws of audience.
— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) June 27, 2023
GW Law alumni and D.C. attorney Aaron Parnas:
This recording is as close to a smoking gun as you can get.
This proves willfulness. https://t.co/XmBMpbc3Hl
— Aaron Parnas (@AaronParnas) June 27, 2023
Vice President of CREW ( Citizens for Responsible Ethics in Washington) Adam Smith:
I appreciate the criminal simplicity of “these are the papers.” https://t.co/ZpVFQVyVvE
— Adam Smith (@asmith83) June 27, 2023
MSNBC’s Katie Phang:
This is so bad for Trump. https://t.co/K8wEg9sLcM
— Katie (💙-check) Phang (@KatiePhang) June 27, 2023
This is the final knell in Trump’s legal coffin. There is no way out now.
Hear the bombshell recording from CNN here.
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
