Trump: President can declassify docs “even by thinking about it”

Anderson Cooper 360

CNN

News

3.7 • 3.8K Ratings

🗓️ 23 September 2022

⏱️ 44 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Former President Trump claimed that “if you’re the President of the United States you can declassify just by saying it’s declassified” and “even by thinking about it.” CNN Legal Analyst Norm Eisen explains the process of declassifying documents to Anderson Cooper and says “even a President has to submit to the law.” Plus, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi withdrew from a long-planned interview with CNN’s Chief International Anchor Christiane Amanpour after she “politely declined” a last-minute demand to wear a head scarf. Amanpour has interviewed every Iranian president since 1995. She explains to Anderson Cooper why she would never cover her head to conduct an interview with an Iranian official outside the country where it’s not required. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Good evening.
0:01.0	We begin tonight with more planes speaking from judges to the former president and his attorneys.
0:06.1	Today, the court appointed special master ordered Trump's attorneys to back up their clients
0:10.1	now repeated claims that the FBI planted evidence during their search at Marlago.
0:15.2	Just last night, three judges from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, to whom the former
0:18.9	president appointed, cast doubt on Trump's other unsubstantiated claim that he declassified
0:24.5	all the documents in his possession.
0:26.7	The judges wrote, and I quote, the record contains no evidence that any of these records
0:30.9	were declassified and before the special master plaintiff resisted providing any evidence
0:36.1	that he had declassified any of these documents.
0:38.9	Now, as we, you know, there's a report it and as every expert we've spoken to has said
0:43.3	there is a process for declassification.
0:45.2	And if you don't believe them, take it from these Republican senators today.
0:49.9	There's a process for declassifying documents.
0:54.4	There is a process that one must go through it.
0:57.0	Okay, so that's pretty clear.
0:58.4	What isn't clear or accurate is what the former president claimed in an interview last
1:02.1	night with his TV friend Sean Hannity.
1:06.0	If you're the president of the United States, you can declassify just by saying it's
1:09.8	declassified, even by thinking about it, because you're sending it to Marlago or to wherever
1:15.5	you're sending it.
1:17.4	And there doesn't have to be a process.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from CNN, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of CNN and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.