(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . "As stupid as he is evil" Previous Guy reveals he's a 'Crook on Tape' [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-05-31 Previous Guy definitely kept a classified document, because 'mental declassifying' will become as iconic as “But it was wrong”. His jonesing about invading Iran as a means to saving his presidency with an illegal war plan was not unfamiliar to his national security advisors. Other folks like Tom Fitton, told him what he wants to hear. x It has always been a tough call whether Trump is as stupid as he is evil. This isn’t making it any easier. https://t.co/bk7idibqWe pic.twitter.com/Fx32oaDILl — George Conway 🇺🇦 (@gtconway3d) May 31, 2023 Federal prosecutors have obtained an audio recording of a summer 2021 meeting in which former President Donald Trump acknowledges he held onto a classified Pentagon document about a potential attack on Iran, multiple sources told CNN, undercutting his argument that he declassified everything. The recording indicates Trump understood he retained classified material after leaving the White House, according to multiple sources familiar with the investigation. On the recording, Trump’s comments suggest he would like to share the information but he’s aware of limitations on his ability post-presidency to declassify records, two of the sources said. CNN has not listened to the recording, but multiple sources described it. One source said the relevant portion on the Iran document is about two minutes long, and another source said the discussion is a small part of a much longer meeting. Special counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the Justice Department investigation into Trump, has focused on the meeting as part of the criminal investigation into Trump’s handling of national security secrets. Sources describe the recording as an “important” piece of evidence in a possible case against Trump, who has repeatedly asserted he could retain presidential records and “automatically” declassify documents. www.cnn.com/… www.cnn.com/... x "He's Donald Trump and he likes trophies...it's very easy to imagine him...wanting to show off his little toys, his little trophies, these secret things that no one else could see, to other people" - @Timodc w/ @NicolleDWallace pic.twitter.com/h2nYw6T62W — Deadline White House (@DeadlineWH) May 31, 2023 Months before Judicial Watch's Tom Fitton convinced Trump -- based on a faulty reading of a 2012 judicial opinion -- that any documents he retained from his White House days were necessarily his, Trump sang a different tune. And Lordy, there is tape. Lisa Rubin @lawofruby Some observers, remembering the reference to Fitton in the last House Jan. 6 committee hearing, have wondered whether he was there to testify as part of Smith's Jan. 6 investigation. After all, days before the 2020 election, Fitton prepared a statement for Trump, as shared with Trump aides Molly Michael and Dan Scavino, declaring Trump’s victory on the basis of ballots counted “before the Election Day deadline.” (Of course, there are ballots, including those from members of the military serving overseas, that can be lawfully counted after Election Day.) But I’ve been focused on Fitton’s role in advising Trump in another capacity and one that relates to the other investigation under Smith's purview: How Trump should handle records from his presidency. Throughout litigation that followed the FBI’s search of Mar-a-Lago last August, Trump argued that search was ill-conceived (and potentially unlawful) because, among other reasons, all of the documents seized actually were his personal property. (Unsurprisingly, the Justice Department took issue with that position.) x As an aside, as we learn that investigators have obtained this recording and interviewed Milley, recall that Fitton apparently spoke to the grand jury earlier this year as well. 3/https://t.co/APmyTtJD3I — Lisa Rubin (@lawofruby) May 31, 2023 x TROUBLE: Here’s the dirt on the latest subpoenas from Special Counsel Jack Smith https://t.co/eBWXCG2RpN — #TuckFrump (@realTuckFrumper) May 31, 2023 [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/5/31/2172553/--stupid-as-he-is-evil-Previous-Guy-reveals-he-s-a-Crook-on-Tape Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/