Justice Department prosecutors obtained an audio recording of the former president donald trump discuss the retention of a classified Pentagon document linked to a potential attack on Iran, as part of an ongoing investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents.
Trump suggested on the recording that he wanted to share information from the document with others, but knew there were limits to what he could declassify after leaving office, reports CNN.
The comments on the recording, made in July 2021 at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, would appear to undermine the former president’s repeated claims that he declassified documents he took with him from the White House. To Mar-a-Lago, his Florida estateafter leaving office.
Aide Margo Martin regularly recorded Trump at the time so she could accurately describe his remarks in the memoir of former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
The recording could also be a vital aid to prosecutors seeking to prove that Trump knew his ability to possess classified documents was limited.
Justice Department prosecutors obtained an audio recording of former President Donald Trump discussing the retention of a classified Pentagon document related to a potential attack on Iran, as part of an ongoing investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents.
It was provided to Special Counsel Jack Smith, whose team of prosecutors spent months investigating the potential mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and whether Trump or anyone else sought to criminally obstruct the investigation.
The investigation appears to be in its final stages, with prosecutors having interviewed a wide range of witnesses before the grand jury.
Trump has yet to be charged in connection with the handling of classified documents and the raid on his Mar-a-Lago Florida home, although he faces an ongoing case over silent money payments to the star. Stormy Daniels porn.
The criminal investigation began last year after the National Archives and Records Administration alerted the FBI to the presence of classified documents in 15 boxes of documents belatedly returned from Mar-a-Lago by Trump and his officials.
Investigators initially issued a subpoena for the remaining classified files, but after receiving only about three dozen during a June 2022 visit to Mar-a-Lago, they returned with a search warrant two months later. And retrieved approximately 100 other documents marked as classified.
Smith, the special counsel, is also investigating efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election – the subject of a similar ongoing investigation by Atlanta prosecutors.
New York prosecutors charged Trump earlier this year with falsifying business records.
Meadows’ autobiography includes a description of what appears to be the same meeting. A lawyer for Meadows declined to comment Wednesday when contacted by The Associated Press.
Aide Margo Martin (pictured) regularly recorded Trump at the time so she could accurately describe his remarks in the memoir of former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows
The recording was provided to Special Counsel Jack Smith, whose team of prosecutors has spent months investigating the potential mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and whether Trump or someone else sought to criminally obstruct the investigation.
Meadows’ autobiography includes a description of what appears to be the same meeting
Authorities stand outside Mar-a-Lago, the residence of former President Donald Trump, amid reports that the FBI executed a search warrant as part of a documentary investigation
Meadows was one of the most senior Trump officials known to respond to a subpoena in the federal investigation.
CNN said witnesses including Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were interviewed about the episode.
A spokesperson for Milley declined to comment on reports that he was interviewed.
A spokesperson for the special counsel declined to comment.
A Trump spokesperson said in a statement that the investigation was “baseless” and amounted to “continued interference in the presidential election.”
Smith has finished collecting evidence on how confidential presidential records ended up at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago compound, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week.
The newspaper, citing people familiar with the matter, said Trump allies expected an indictment to be served.
Special advocates enjoy a large degree of autonomy within the Justice Department, and officials have repeatedly pointed out that the recommendation of whether or not to pursue charges against Trump or anyone else in the investigation rests with Smith and his crew.
Witnesses, including General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were asked about the episode
Authorities stand outside Mar-a-Lago, the residence of former President Donald Trump, amid reports that the FBI executed a search warrant as part of a documentary investigation
Former President Donald Trump, Greg Norman, CEO of LIV Golf, right, and Paul Myler, Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Washington, left, watch the second round of LIV Golf at Trump National Golf Club, Saturday May 27. 2023
The investigation aims to determine whether Trump illegally retained classified documents taken with him from the White House to his home in Florida after his term ended and whether he sought to obstruct government efforts to recover the records.
Smith’s work examines whether anyone tried to sabotage the criminal investigation or whether Trump illegally possessed documents he should have turned over to authorities.
Trump insists he did nothing wrong and claims his power as president meant the documents were automatically declassified if he chose to remove them from his official offices.
But it’s unclear if the lead attorney has gathered enough evidence for Garland to charge the ex-commander-in-chief with a crime.
