In leaked audio of the president speaking to donors, Trump admitted that he authorized the strike on Soleimani because he was saying bad things about America.
CNN reported on the audio of Trump talking to donors at Mar-a-Lago:
In his speech — held inside the gilded ballroom on his Mar-a-Lago property — he claimed that Soleimani was “saying bad things about our country” before the strike, which led to his decision to authorize his killing.
“How much of this shit do we have to listen to?” Trump asked. “How much are we going to listen to?”
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
Trump did not describe an “imminent threat” that led to his decision to kill Soleimani, the justification used by administration officials in the aftermath of the attack.
Instead, he described Soleimani as a “noted terrorist” who “was down on our list” and “was supposed to be in his country” before traveling to other nations in the region.
Trump also lied and invented details for donors, as he used one of his most famous tells: The sir story. Anytime Trump starts providing details and refers to someone calling him sir, he is lying.
There was no imminent threat from Soleimani. Trump ordered the killing of a person who everyone can agree was a bad actor because he wanted to distract from impeachment. Trump thought that he could turn public opinion and get the country to rally around him as a wartime president if he killed Soleimani.
The leaked audio confirms that there must be a full investigation into how the Soleimani decision was made because according to Trump’s own words, the White House is lying about why Trump authorized the strike.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
