New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman released photos on Monday that appear to show that former President Donald Trump tried to dispose of documents by ripping them up and placing them in toilets.
The pictures, which appear to back up Haberman's reporting in her forthcoming book, "Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America," support reporting from multiple news outlets that Trump routinely ripped up documents in violation of the Presidential Records Act.
Haberman obtained the photos, which were first published by Axios and which she also shared with Yahoo News, from sources inside the former administration.
"On the left is a White House toilet, the word 'qualified' and a capital I visible," Haberman wrote in a tweet on Monday. "On the left, a toilet from a Trump trip overseas."
Other words on the torn-up sheets of paper, written with a marker, include the name “Stefanik,” in apparent reference to Rep. Elise Stefanik, the House Republican from New York who staunchly defended Trump throughout his second impeachment.
When Haberman first reported Trump's penchant for attempting to dispose of documents and notes by flushing them down the toilet, a practice that staffers said sometimes resulted in clogs requiring a plumber to fix, the former president sternly denied that the allegations were true.
"Also, another fake story, that I flushed papers and documents down a White House toilet, is categorically untrue and simply made up by a reporter in order to get publicity for a mostly fictitious book," Trump said in a statement in February.
On Monday, even after photographic evidence was published that appeared to back up the toilet claims, Trump spokesperson Taylor Budowich continued to try to cast doubt on the story.
"You have to be pretty desperate to sell books if pictures of paper in a toilet bowl is part of your promotional plan," Budowich told Axios.
As part of the Presidential Records Act, U.S. presidents are required by law to preserve letters, emails and work documents and transfer them to the National Archives. After the Jan. 6 House select committee requested presidential records from the National Archives relating to the insurgency at the U.S. Capitol, Trump filed suit to block that transfer of documents, but federal judges and the Supreme Court ruled against the former president.
In February, it was learned that Trump had improperly removed 15 boxes of documents, some of which were labeled "Top Secret," from the White House; he then sent those boxes to Mar-a-Lago, his Florida golf resort. The National Archives requested an investigation into how the documents ended up there. The Archives has since retrieved the boxes.
"The media's characterization of my relationship with NARA [National Archives and Records Administration] is Fake News. It was exactly the opposite! It was a great honor to work with NARA to help formally preserve the Trump Legacy," Trump said in a statement released in February.
Fox NewsBill Barr, the one-time attorney general under former President Donald Trump, told Fox News on Friday that the ex-president had no “legitimate reason” to hoard classified material at his Florida resort. Furthermore, he defended the Justice Department’s decision to raid Mar-a-Lago, arguing that the DOJ was “being jerked around” by Team Trump.As a federal judge decides whether or not to grant Trump’s request for a “special master” to review the documents seized from his property last month
Chaos engulfed Trump's last days in the White House, in part because he didn't think he'd actually be leaving office.
Trump said Bill Barr was a "weak and pathetic RINO" after he said the Justice Department probably had "pretty good evidence" before Mar-a-Lago raid.
The MSNBC host skewers the former president for covering his trail of missteps with mistruths
Lawyer Alina Habba revealed the seemingly lax Mar-a-Lago security as she defended Trump on Fox News over an FBI picture of top secret documents.
Most chilling, say security experts, is that several retrieved classified and top secret folders were empty.
A detailed receipt of the materials recovered during the Aug. 8 raid revealed Trump was storing sensitive documents next to a mishmash of newspapers and other items
Good morning, Arizona. Here's what you need to know to start your day.
US District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, did not issue a final ruling and said she needs time to consider both sides' arguments.
In criticizing the way FBI handled evidence in its Mar-a-Lago raid, Trump appeared to admit in his Truth Social post that it wasn't planted.
Donald Trump's intelligence briefings were more about presidential assassinations and other world leaders' affairs than secret weapons programs.
The ex-president wants a "special master" to go through the 33 recovered boxes and containers to determine which ones he can stop prosecutors from taking.
David Lauftman, a former senior counterintelligence official at the DOJ, told Politico Trump looks like he's in serious legal trouble.
Fox News figures have been freaking out over the word, but have no problem using it themselves.
The White House on Thursday rejected criticism from Republicans that President Joe Biden is dividing Americans by attacking ardent followers of former President Donald Trump, saying the party's far-right wing is trying to dodge accountability. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre spoke after Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel said "Joe Biden is the divider-in-chief and epitomizes the current state of the Democrat Party: one of divisiveness, disgust, and hostility towards half the country." The rhetorical crossfire took place as Biden, who last week referred to some Republicans as supporting "semi-fascism," planned to speak about threats to democracy in a prime-time speech in Philadelphia.
"It's a disgrace what they've done to them," Trump said, referring to sweeping Justice Department and FBI investigations of the deadly insurrection.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said on Thursday that she'd be "happy to drain Texas of all its residents” and give them a warm welcome to Chicago.
The National Archives took it upon itself to dispel Trump's claims.
Each cover sheet instructs handlers to "protect it from unauthorized disclosure" in the interest of "national security."
The conservative network's White House correspondent didn't exactly get a vote of confidence from critics.