Federal prosecutors have reportedly obtained a recording of former president Donald Trump discussing classified documents he kept at his private residences long after his term expired in January 2021.
According to CNN, the audiotape of Mr Trump was created during the summer of 2021, approximately six months after the ex-president had left office.
It reportedly captures a discussion during which Mr Trump was reacting to the publication of a story in The New Yorker regarding how Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley took actions to ensure the outgoing president issued no illegal orders.
In the New Yorker article, journalist Susan Glasser reported that Mr Milley was concerned that Mr Trump “might set in motion a full-scale conflict that was not justified” by ordering military action against Iran.
The ex-president was reportedly recorded as he waved a document and said it would undermine what Mr Milley had said if he could legally show it to anyone.
CNN reported that the audio recording contains the sound of paper rustling, as if Mr Trump was waving a document around. The recording also reportedly captured laughter after the ex-president noted that he was not permitted to show the document to anyone.
The July 2021 meeting took place long before Mr Trump’s aides sent 15 boxes of records from his Palm Beach, Florida home to the National Archives.
That January 2022 transfer of documents led Archives officials to discover multiple classified documents among the records sent back from Mr Trump’s residence, leading the agency to notify the Department of Justice about the discovery.
The Justice Department’s probe into Mr Trump’s alleged unlawful retention of national defence information is being overseen by a special prosecutor, Jack Smith.
Mr Smith has reportedly obtained other evidence which shows Mr Trump made efforts to obstruct the investigation by concealing documents from the government, even after he was served a grand jury subpoena compelling him to return all classified documents in his posession.
The investigation is reportedly in its final stages and could result in charges against Mr Trump as soon as this summer.
