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Did Trump Try To Cover Up Russian Election Interference By Stealing Classified Binder?

Did Trump Try To Cover Up Russian Election Interference By Stealing Classified Binder?

A new report about a highly classified binder on Russian election interference disappearing from the Trump White House raises new questions.

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Sarah Jones & Jason Easley
Dec 15, 2023
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Did Trump Try To Cover Up Russian Election Interference By Stealing Classified Binder?
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Surprise: A Binder Of Highly Classified Intel On Russian Election Interference Went Missing As Trump Left Office

With Trump accused of stealing classified documents and running for president again in 2024, news about the potential theft of a highly classified binder containing collected intelligence on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election is especially relevant.

CNN reported:

The binder contained raw intelligence the US and its NATO allies collected on Russians and Russian agents, including sources and methods that informed the US government’s assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin sought to help Trump win the 2016 election, sources tell CNN.

The intelligence was so sensitive that lawmakers and congressional aides with top secret security clearances were able to review the material only at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, where their work scrutinizing it was itself kept in a locked safe.

The binder was last seen at the White House during Trump’s final days in office. The former president had ordered it brought there so he could declassify a host of documents related to the FBI’s Russia investigation. Under the care of then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, the binder was scoured by Republican aides working to redact the most sensitive information so it could be declassified and released publicly.

Trump issued an order declassifying most of the binder. Declassified copies were made to send to right-wing journalists, but the White House demanded redactions, all of the copies had to be recovered, and the binder was never released.

Then the sensitive raw intelligence vanished into thin air.

It was last seen with former Trump White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows also known as the guy who was reportedly burning documents related to the 1/6 attack.

The binder is gone, but the story raises vital points that need to be discussed.

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