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The latest allegations against Donald Trump, that he disclosed national security secrets related to America’s top secret nuclear submarines to a foreign national at his Mar-a-Lago resort just months after leaving office, has experts raising alarms – especially as the ex-president is currently under indictment on Espionage Act charges.
But the Mar-a-Lago disclosure is far from the first allegation against Trump for disclosing or revealing national security secrets, sensitive, or classified information.
MSNBC’s Steve Benen, a producer for The Rachel Maddow Show and editor of the MaddowBlog, put together a non-chronological list he calls, “The Top 10 Instances In Which Donald Trump Allegedly Shared Sensitive Information For Reasons Unknown.”
As out turns out, just like the latest incident, at least two others involve nuclear submarine secrets.
The first time, as Benen notes, was just months into his presidency. In May of 2017 Trump held a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Ambassador to the U.S., Sergei Kislyak, inside the Oval Office, with no press or Antone from the Trump administration present. The only way Americans learned of the meeting, which did not appear on Trump’s official White House calendar, was a Russian reporter took photos and Russian media posted them to social media.
“President Trump revealed highly classified information to the Russian foreign minister and ambassador in a White House meeting last week, according to current and former U.S. officials, who said Trump’s disclosures jeopardized a critical source of intelligence on the Islamic State,” The Washington Post had reported on May 15, 2017.
“In 2021,” Benen writes, “Trump allegedly shared classified information about American nuclear submarines with an Australian billionaire. The disclosures, the New York Times reported, “potentially endangered the U.S. nuclear fleet.”
“In 2020,” Benen continues, “Trump disclosed the existence of a secret nuclear weapons program to Bob Woodward, to the surprise of national security insiders.”
“In October 2019, Trump needlessly blurted out all kinds of ‘highly classified or tactically sensitive’ tactical and operational details about the al-Baghdadi mission in Syria,” Benen says, recording it as the fourth instance.
NBC News had reported, “Officials cringed as Trump spilled sensitive details of al-Baghdadi raid,” and added: “Some details the president has revealed are inaccurate, others are classified. Officials say they worry what to put in briefings for a man with no filter.”
“In August 2019, Trump published a tweet about a failed Iranian rocket launch, which included a sensitive surveillance photo,” writes Benen, pointing to this New York Times report titled: “In a Tweet Taunting Iran, Trump Releases an Image Thought to Be Classified.”
The sixth instance: “In early October 2019, Trump publicly discussed American nuclear weapons in Turkey, something U.S. officials have long avoided disclosing and/or confirming.”
He points to this NBC News report: “Why does Trump keep blurting out sensitive information?”
At number seven: “In February 2017, Trump discussed sensitive details about North Korea’s ballistic missile tests with the prime minister of Japan at a Mar-a-Lago dining area, in view of wealthy civilians/customers,” writes Benen. He points to a Washington Post article titled: “Trump turns Mar-a-Lago Club terrace into open-air situation room.”
The eighth instance Benen lists he teases out: “‘Secret. This is secret information. Look, look at this,’ Trump was recorded saying, adding, ‘Isn’t that incredible?’ … It’s so cool.” That goes to this MSNBC report: “Listen: Audio of Trump discussing classified documents published by CNN.”
Next up on Benen’s list: “In July 2019, Trump had a sensitive conversation with Ambassador Gordon Sondland, while Sondland was in a Ukrainian restaurant. A former senior director of the White House Situation Room said soon after, ‘The security ramifications are insane.’”
Benen links to his own 2019 article titled, “Latest example of Trump’s security breaches is described as ‘insane’,” where he writes: “Donald Trump has mishandled sensitive information with such frequency that I was able to put together a top-10 list a couple of weeks ago.”
So according to Benen, there were at least ten instances as far back as 2019 of Trump mishandling sensitive information.
Finally, Benen writes, ” In May 2017, Trump said a bit too much about nuclear submarines during a chat with then-Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.”
A May, 2017 Buzzfeed News article reads: “The Pentagon Can’t Believe Trump Told Another President About Nuclear Subs Near North Korea.”
“’We never talk about subs!’ three defense officials told BuzzFeed News after a transcript of a call between President Trump and Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte was published.”
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