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Trump withholds sensitive documents, releases others in JFK case

As promised President Donald has released hundreds of records on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. However, the president has withdrawn the release of all the files in the government’s possession stating “I have no choice,” Trump said in a memo, citing “potentially irreversible harm” to national security if he were to allow all records out now. He was placing those files under a six-month review.

Later in the evening, the Archives posted online the documents approved for release.

Officials say Trump will impress upon federal agencies that “only in the rarest cases” should JFK files stay secret after the six-month review.

Despite having months to prepare for disclosures that have been set on the calendar for 25 years, Trump’s decision came down to a last-minute debate with intelligence agencies — a tussle the president then prolonged by calling for still more review.

That standard includes details that could cause “harm to the military defense, intelligence operations, law enforcement or conduct of foreign relations,” Trump wrote in his order. The archivist will have two weeks to tell Trump whether those recommendations validate keeping the withheld information a secret after April 26.

Experts say the publication of the last trove of evidence could help allay suspicions of a conspiracy — at least for some.

The collection includes more than 3,100 records — comprising hundreds of thousands of pages — that have never been seen by the public. About 30,000 documents were released previously — with redactions.

Whatever details are released, they’re not expected to give a definitive answer to a question that still lingers for some: Whether anyone other than Lee Harvey Oswald was involved in the assassination.

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