In politics, things can get a little…classified. And when they do, it’s trivia gold. Buckle up, trivia fans, because we’re about to dive into the tale of Trump, tapes, and a little mischief in six unbelievable (but true) trivia facts.
1. The Bedminster Banter
Picture this: July 2021, Trump’s Bedminster resort in New Jersey. A casual meeting with a publisher and writer, both working on a memoir for Trump’s former chief of staff, Mark Meadows. Sounds pretty standard, right? Well, not when discussing classified Pentagon documents detailing plans for a potential attack on Iran. Oh, and did we mention these individuals didn’t have security clearances?
2. “These are the Papers”
In the audio, first aired on CNN on June 26, 2023, Trump casually drops a bombshell, “These are the papers,” while discussing the Pentagon’s attack plans, “This is secret information.” We’re not experts, but we’re pretty sure that’s not how you handle classified information. But hey, what do we know? We’re just here for trivia.
3. The Hillary Jokes
In a twist that could only happen in political satire, Trump and his aides decided to lighten the mood with a little humor. They joked about Hillary Clinton’s emails during the conversation. Because nothing says ‘classified meeting’ like a good ol’ email scandal joke, right?
4. Declassification Dilemma
Here’s where things get interesting. In the conversation, Trump claimed he could have declassified the document while in office, but alas, he no longer had that power. But not to worry, he had a solution – use it for the book! Because who needs declassification when you’ve got a memoir to sell?
5. Fox News Fumble
In a recent interview with Fox News, Trump claimed he only talked about “newspaper stories, magazine stories, and articles” at the meeting. But the audio tape begs to differ.
6. The Tape Trial
Fast forward to June 13, 2023, Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 counts related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents kept at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Judge Aileen M. Cannon has scheduled the first pretrial conference for July 14.
For further reading: Get all the Trump Indictment Trivia Facts you need.
News Trivia Quiz Time
Now that you know all the facts about the Trump Tape scandal, how about a news quiz?
Even more Trump legal trivia facts
Get all of Trump’s legal woes explained in trivia fun facts:
- E. JEAN CARROLL’S COURTROOM VICTORY: TRUMP’S LATEST TRIVIA TWIST IN THE LEGAL LABYRINTH
- TRUMP’S FIRST INDICTMENT: A TRIVIAL PURSUIT OF JUSTICE
- THE TRUMP TAPE: A TRIVIAL TALE OF CLASSIFIED CHATTER IN 6 FACTS
- TRUMP’S THIRD INDICTMENT: A TRIVIA TWIST ON JAN. 6 CAPITOL CAPER
Sources
We cross-checked our facts about the Trump tape scandal with the world’s most trusted news providers.
- CNN Politics: Exclusive: CNN obtains the tape of Trumps 2021 conversation about classified documents
- The New York Times: Audio of Trump Suggests He Discussed Classified Iran Document: Listen Now
- The Washington Post: In an audio recording, Trump was heard discussing sensitive Iran document
- AP News: Audio emerges with new details of Trump’s 2021 conversation about classified documents
- The Guardian: Trump tape heard on CNN discussing military secrets at his golf club
