'I don't know what...': Donald Trump reacts to Russia probe files discovered in FBI office; ducks reporter questions

Time of India

5 days ago

US President
Donald Trump
on Wednesday ducked reporter questions when asked about reports that FBI Director Kash Patel had uncovered a secret room at the FBI headquarters containing 'burn bags' filled with documents related to the 2016 Trump–Russia investigation.
During a press interaction, a reporter questioned Trump about Patel's discovery: 'Kash Patel reportedly found burn bags of Russiagate materials,' the reporter said.
Trump responded, puzzled: 'What?'
When the reporter repeated, 'Burn bags,' Trump replied, 'I don't know what you mean.'
As the journalist tried to clarify, saying, 'Bags full of ...'
Trump cut in with a quip: 'Oh, I thought you said appointed a man named Burn Bag,' showing he may have misunderstood the question and thought 'burn bags' was someone's name.
The 'burn bags' system is used to destroy documents designated as classified or higher.
According to the New York Post, the secretive room at the FBI's Washington, DC headquarters contained thousands of pages of classified or sensitive records, including a classified annex to the 2023 report by former special counsel John Durham, who investigated the original Trump-Russia probe, known as 'Crossfire Hurricane.'
The 29-page appendix, never made public before, contains key intelligence Durham reviewed, according to Fox News Digital, which first reported the discovery.
However, it remains unclear whether the contents found had reached their destruction deadline or if they were preserved intentionally or due to oversight.
According to Fox News Digital, the annex contains intelligence indicating that foreign sources warned US officials, before July 2016, that the FBI might be working to spread a false narrative that Trump's campaign was colluding with Russia.
These warnings reportedly came before the bureau launched the "Crossfire Hurricane" investigation. The annex, now undergoing declassification, will reportedly be turned over to Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), with plans for eventual public release.
Patel, who was appointed FBI director by Trump during his second term, discovered the secret Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) soon after taking over the bureau.
In a conversation with podcast host Joe Rogan, Patel claimed, "When I first got to the bureau, I found a room that [former FBI Director James] Comey and others hid from the world in the Hoover Building, full of documents and computer hard drives no one had ever seen or heard of."
Patel has since turned the recovered materials over to Senator Grassley, who is reviewing them.
Among the key players overseeing the declassification are CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and acting NSA Director William Hartman.
Once the documents are cleared, Grassley plans to make them public.
The Crossfire Hurricane probe originally began in July 2016 as the FBI investigated alleged links between the Trump campaign and Russian operatives.
That investigation led to the appointment of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, whose 2019 report concluded that while there were 'links' between the Trump team and Russian individuals, there was no proof of conspiracy.
However, later scrutiny revealed irregularities in the FBI's conduct, especially the misuse of FISA warrants against Trump adviser Carter Page. In October 2020, then-Attorney General Bill Barr appointed John Durham as special counsel to investigate the origins of the probe.
The newly discovered annex reportedly contains intelligence that 'predicted the FBI's actions with alarming specificity,' further fueling Republican claims that the bureau may have sought to interfere in the 2016 election to favour Hillary Clinton.