President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered the declassification of Russia probe documents related to the investigation of his campaign to its alleged ties to the Russian government.
Trump has constantly stated that he was going to make details of the investigation public, which he refers to as a “witch hunt.” Trump has spent the last few weeks pardoning those who were targeted during the investigation, such as George Papadopoulos and Roger Stone.
It is currently unclear what documents Trump wants to be declassified. He stated his reasoning for the order was based on the results of a review by the Justice Department, which gave him a “binder of materials” of classified information. Trump wants as much information within this binder declassified as possible.
The FBI wishes that all of the materials remained classified, but stated some content should be redacted due to how sensitive the content may be. It is unknown when the contents will be public.
“I determined that the materials in that binder should be declassified to the maximum extent possible,” said Trump in the memorandum. “In response, and as part of the iterative process of the declassification review, under a cover letter dated January 17, 2021, the Federal Bureau of Investigation noted its continuing objection to any further declassification of the materials in the binder and also, on the basis of a review that included Intelligence Community equities, identified the passages that it believed it was most crucial to keep from public disclosure. I have determined to accept the redactions proposed for continued classification by the FBI in that January 17 submission.”
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