Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows reportedly told federal prosecutors that he could not verify a central claim made by Trump and his defenders regarding the declassification of classified materials before Trump’s departure from office.

In conversations with investigators led by Special Counsel Jack Smith, Meadows stated that he had no recollection of Trump issuing any orders or discussions related to the broad declassification of classified information prior to leaving his presidential term. This assertion contradicts assertions made by Trump and his supporters.

Meadows further clarified that he was unaware of any directive from Trump mandating the automatic declassification of materials taken from the Oval Office.

Recent reports have also surfaced regarding an early version of Meadows’ book titled “The Chief’s Chief.” In this draft, Meadows reportedly recounted an incident where Trump had a classified war plan on display during a meeting at his Bedminster resort. However, the passage detailing this event was later omitted before the book’s publication.

It is alleged that Meadows requested this edit to avoid any potential repercussions arising from Trump’s possession of classified war planning material. Meadows indicated that he did not consult Trump about these edits.

Meadows also told investigators that he had no involvement in packing boxes, including classified documents, that were taken to Mar-a-Lago after Trump left the White House. Meadows reportedly informed investigators that he did not personally witness Trump packing boxes nor was he aware that Trump took any government records, including classified documents.

Additionally, Meadows recounted that he offered to go through the boxes containing official documents, retrieved from Mar-a-Lago upon the National Archives’ request in 2021, with the intention of returning the records to Washington. However, Trump declined the offer.

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