Donald Trump Admits He Never Watched That “Top Secret” Iran Video

Surprise! The footage does not exist.


Speaking at a campaign rally in Daytona, Florida on Wednesday, Donald Trump spoke in length about having watched a video that allegedly showed Iranian officials “pouring” $400 million off of a plane on the same day Tehran released four American prisoners back in January.

His remarks, which immediately sparked concern that the Republican nominee was divulging classified information, aligned with a report that the US had sent $400 million to Iran on the same day that it freed the American prisoners, a payment critics have decried as ransom. Both U.S. officials and Trump’s own campaign staff were quick to dismiss Trump’s assertion that any such video even existed. Nevertheless, the real estate magnate continued repeating his claim.

But by Friday, Trump appeared to change his story. He tweeted the following mea culpa:

And there you have it—Trump did something truly shocking on Friday: admit he was flat out wrong.

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And the essential ingredient that makes all this possible? Readers like you.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to devote the time and resources to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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