Frustrated CNN Anchors Roast Trump Lawyer During Epic Clash Over Bombshell Tape: ‘You Can’t Have It Both Ways’
Clearly frustrated CNN anchors roasted Trump attorney Jim Trusty over the course of a marathon interview about the bombshell recording of ex-President Donald Trump discussing a classified document, repeatedly remarking on his contradictory and evasive responses.
CNN broke the news Wednesday afternoon that Trump was caught on tape discussing a classified document that he had taken with him when he left the White House. On the tape, Trump reportedly acknowledges he can’t show the document — which outlines a plan to invade Iran — to his visitors because of the classification attached to it.
On Wednesday night’s edition of CNN Primetime, co-anchors Kaitlan Collins and Abby Phillip grilled Trusty for over 18 minutes in an interview that was, by turns, contentious, evasive, and contradictory — sometimes all at once.
Trusty spent the bulk of the interview trying to dismiss the report by accusing CNN of facilitating a DOJ leak campaign, which Collins eventually hit back on.
Early on, Phillip identified a crucial contradiction between Trusty’s dubious legal argument that Trump could and did declassify all of the documents he took with him and Trusty’s refusal to say the document discussed in the tape had been declassified:
PHILLIP: But what I’m — what I’m asking you is when it comes to your client, you will not say what he has said, which is that he blanket-declassified all of those documents. Did he do that?
TRUSTY: Yes. And he personalized them.
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIP: Well, then, can you then say —
TRUSTY: I’m not going to try the case.
PHILLIP: If he blanket — if he blanket-declassified those documents, you should able to be very easily to say this document that he is referring to on this tape was declassified. Can you say that?
TRUSTY: I am not trying my case based on leaks that you want to celebrate.
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIP: OK. But do you see the logic — you see the logic of what I’m trying to get at, right?
TRUSTY: I see the reality of what you’re doing.
PHILLIP: If you’re saying they’re all declassified but you don’t want to say —
TRUSTY: Well, aside from not letting me finish.
PHILLIP: But you don’t want to say whether this document is declassified?
TRUSTY: Can I finish my thought instead of you celebrating your moment? Here’s the issue —
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIP: I’m just — I’m just trying to get to the bottom of it.
TRUSTY: I know. But what I’m telling you is when DOJ and FBI are on a leak campaign, where they’re selectively taking half truths and mistruths, complete falsehoods, and putting them out there to Kaitlan Collins and you guys to dangle out here on TV, I’m not going to respond to that. I’m not going justify their behavior by acting if it’s actual fact. It’s just not.
Collins faced a similarly evasive and combative Trusty, and summed up his responses dryly:
COLLINS: Well, right. But that raises the question why there were still so many left there when they did show up to execute that search warrant.
But, Jim, when it comes to this document specifically, the heart of this reporting, how did this document wind up at Bedminster?
TRUSTY: Yeah. I know I’m getting boring for your ratings, but I am not going to try the case. It’s being set up by leaks that I don’t believe are accurate.
COLLINS: How did — has the document been returned to the National Archives?
TRUSTY: Same answer.
COLLINS: Okay, so you’re not prepared to say tonight whether the documents have been returned to National Archives or declassified.
When Trusty complained about a lack of “context” in the reporting, Phillip called him out for failing to provide any information of his own:
PHILLIP: Well, I mean, we invite you’d here to provide some clarity. And I — honestly, in this conversation, I’ve heard a lot about the leaks. I’ve heard a lot about the prosecutors. But I really haven’t heard any explanations for your client’s alleged behavior. And I think that’s the disconnect here.
TRUSTY: Sure.
PHILLIP: You also — you won’t even say whether the document we’re talking about is classified or not. I mean, I think —
TRUSTY: Right.
PHILLIP: — I think if you’re listening to this, most people would come away from it saying you can’t have it both ways. You can’t say they were all declassified and not say that this document that we’re talking about is declassified.
TRUSTY: I actually think your viewers are smart enough to realize that I’m taking a stance on principle that no matter how feverishly you want to pursue the story that was leaked to you, I’m not going to dignify it by treating it as its fact. We’re not going try the case on CNN.
Phillip wrapped up the interview with a zinger about Trusty’s lack of responsiveness:
PHILLIP: Well, you can take up the leaks with DOJ. We’re going the report what we know.
TRUSTY: Sure.
PHILLIP: We’re going to ask you about what we know. We appreciate you coming on.
TRUSTY: I may or may not answer. But that’s the reality of it. So —
PHILLIP: I think the audience heard that loud and clear tonight.
TRUSTY: It’s true.
PHILLIP: Jim Trusty, thank you very much.
Watch above via CNN Primetime.
