CNN dropped a bombshell report earlier this week by revealing audio recordings that former President Donald Trump admitted he failed to declassify documents he shared with unauthorized people. Michael Smerconish said the network was playing the situation close to the vest.
While beginning his SiriusXM show earlier this week, Smerconish — who is a CNN contributor and weekend host — said the network wouldn’t share with him the details of what the tapes contained while asking him to appear that evening.
“I got a text or an email — I forget which — yesterday in the late afternoon, and it was from a CNN producer with whom I have a good relationship; a guy that I have a lot of respect for,” Smerconish shared. “And he said, ‘Are you available to come on later tonight and talk about a breaking news story?’ And I said I’m not and then he said, ‘Are you sure? Maybe we could do a pre-tape?’
“And I said, ‘Well, can you tell me what it is? Because it sounds pretty big if you’re trying to cajole me into a pre-tape’. And he said that he couldn’t. That he thought that it might break after about 8:00 PM. Indeed, Anderson Cooper last night at 8:00 PM was the one to break CNN’s possession of this recording that was referenced in the Trump indictment pertaining to him waving classified information.”
He then — like many other news radio hosts — wondered just how the network came into possession of the tape.
“So CNN was the first to have it and then other news outlets are able to obtain it as well. It’s kind of interesting that we don’t know the origin of the tape and we don’t know the identity of the individuals who are on the tape save one who is identified in some of the news accounts as being a Trump staffer.”
