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Fox News co-host Steve Doocy suggested on Tuesday that the audio of Donald Trump speaking about classified documents may have been leaked by the former president himself, or a member of his team.
Fox & Friends co-host Steve Doocy spoke about the leaked audio obtained by CNN this week where Trump can seemingly be heard speaking about classified documents in his possession.
"If Trump thinks it's an exoneration of him, perhaps somebody on his side actually did the leaking to CNN and Maggie Haberman," Doocy said.
The comments by Doocy come shortly after Trump responded to the leaked audio on his Truth Social account saying that it was an "exoneration."
"The Deranged Special Prosecutor, Jack Smith, working in conjunction with the DOJ & FBI, illegally leaked and 'spun' a tape and transcript of me which is actually an exoneration, rather than what they would have you believe. This continuing Witch Hunt is another ELECTION INTERFERENCE Scam. They are cheaters and thugs!" Trump wrote on Monday evening.
Trump's post was in response to the audio obtained by CNN—where Trump is heard speaking about being in possession of classified documents—amid the ongoing investigation into his handling of the documents by the Department of Justice.
"These are the papers. This was done by the military and given to me," Trump is heard saying in the audio obtained by CNN. "See, as president, I could have declassified it. Now I can't, you know, but this is still a secret."
According to CNN, the audio was recorded during a meeting Trump had with an author who was working with former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and an aide. CNN also reported that Trump was aware the meeting was being recorded.
In a statement to Newsweek on Monday, a spokesperson for Trump said, "The audio tape provides context proving, once again, that President Trump did nothing wrong at all...The President is speaking rhetorically and also quite humorously."
"The media and the Trump-haters once again were all too willing to take the bait, falling for another Democrat-DOJ hoax, hook, line, and sinker," the spokesperson told Newsweek.
Newsweek reached out to Trump's spokesperson via email on Tuesday for further comment.
Earlier this month, Trump was indicted on federal charges related to his handling of classified documents previously recovered from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. He became the first former president to be charged federally after he was accused of mishandling classified documents and retaining a document related to national defense.
Newsweek reached out to a spokesperson for Fox News via email for further comment.
About the writer
Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more