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If tape recordings of President Donald Trump’s conversations exist, the Secret Service does not know about it.
The Wall Street Journal had filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the any tapes that exist.
“In response to your request, the Secret Service has conducted a reasonable search for responsive records,” the Secret Service wrote in a letter to the Journal, which released the response Friday.
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“It appears, from a review of Secret Service’s main indices, that there are no records pertaining to your request that are referenced in these indices,” the letter added.
In a May tweet, Trump opened the question of whether tapes exist by writing, “James Comey better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!”
James Comey better hope that there are no “tapes” of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2017
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The Journal said any tapes would be subject to the Presidential Records Act, and turned over to the National Archives and Records Administration when a president leaves office. It said the administration claims its presidential records are not subject to the FOIA process while the president in question is in office.
The subject was raised at Monday’s press briefing.
“The president made clear in the Rose Garden last week that he would have an announcement shortly,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said.
Former FBI Director James Comey last Thursday referenced them again during his testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee.
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“I hope there are, and I’ll consent to the release. All I can do is hope. The president surely knows if he taped me. Release all the tapes. I’m good with it,” Comey said.
On Friday afternoon, Trump obliquely touched on the subject when asked about it during a Rose Garden press conference.
“I’ll tell you about that maybe sometime in the very near future,” Trump said. “I’ll tell you about it over a very short period of time.”
Trump sought to tamp down expectations.
“You’re going to be very disappointed when you hear the answer,” he said.
After Trump’s comments, the House Intelligence Committee said it wants the tapes, if they exist.
source http://capitalisthq.com/secret-service-says-it-has-no-record-of-white-house-tapes/
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