The administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump is set to release nearly 80,000 pages of secret documents related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy today. Trump announced this on Monday, stating that he had previously ordered the disclosure of these documents regarding the highly controversial 1963 assassination.
Speaking to reporters at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., yesterday, Trump said, “People have been waiting for decades for this. It’s going to be very intriguing.”
After being re-elected as U.S. president, Trump signed an executive order earlier this year instructing the federal government to present plans for releasing documents related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert Kennedy, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
In early February, the FBI revealed that it had discovered thousands of new documents concerning Kennedy’s assassination as part of an investigation prompted by Trump’s executive order.
Background of the Assassination
On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Over the decades, numerous conspiracy theories have emerged regarding his murder. Various polls have shown that many Americans question the official explanation.
A 2023 Gallup poll indicated that 65% of Americans do not believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in assassinating Kennedy, contrary to the conclusion of the Warren Commission.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., son of Robert Kennedy and Trump’s former health secretary, stated in a 2023 interview that he had “concrete” and “highly credible” evidence suggesting the CIA was involved in his uncle’s assassination.
Trump’s Commitment to Declassification
Upon assuming office for his second term, Trump reiterated his commitment to releasing classified documents related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr. Both Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. were assassinated in 1968.
The release of these documents is expected to provide new insights and potentially reshape the narrative surrounding the Kennedy assassination.