Media outlets in the United States have released an audio recording in which former President Donald Trump purportedly boasts about having a classified document during a 2021 meeting.
The recording, obtained by CNN, includes new details from a conversation that is a critical piece of evidence in special counsel Jack Smith’s indictment of Trump over the mishandling of classified information. It includes a moment when Trump seems to indicate he was holding a secret Pentagon document with plans to attack Iran.
The episode is one of two referenced in the indictment where prosecutors allege that Trump showed classified information to others who did not have security clearances, CNN reported.
In the federal indictment against Trump handed up earlier this month, prosecutors said the former president had been recorded during a July 2021 meeting at his golf resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, talking about a military “plan of attack” document that was “highly confidential” and “secret.” The government accused him of showing it to other attendees who lacked the required security clearance to see it.
“See, as president I could have declassified it, but now I can’t,” Trump said in the recorded remarks that could undercut his defense that documents he kept after leaving the White House had been declassified.
Trump was purportedly talking about holding a secret Pentagon document with plans to attack Iran, citing Mark Milley, the then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“Well, with Milley – let me see that. I’ll show you an example,” Trump is heard saying, according to the media reports.
“He said that I wanted to attack Iran – isn’t it amazing? I have a big pile of papers. This thing just came up, look. This was him. They presented me this,” he says, reshuffling the papers.
“It is like highly confidential, secret. This is secret information. Look, look at this. You attack and …” said Trump, according to the transcript.
“See, as president, I could have declassified, but now I can’t, you know. But this is classic,” Trump was heard saying. “Isn’t that interesting? It’s so cool.”
