Bob Woodward releases audio of Trump dropping F-bombs and discussing 'weapons system'
On Anderson Cooper 360 Tuesday, CNN aired previously unheard audio of former President Donald Trump. From 2016 through 2020, famed journalist Bob Woodward recorded 20 conversations he had with the former president, with his knowledge. In one recording, Trump appears to share sensitive information with Woodward.
“I have built a weapons system that nobody’s ever had in this country before,” Trump said. “We have stuff that you haven’t even seen or heard about. We have stuff that Putin and Xi have never heard about before.”
In another, Trump suggests he gets along better with authoritarian-style leaders than he does with others, something that drew criticism during his presidency.
“It’s funny, the relationships I have, the tougher and meaner they are, the better I get along with them. You know? Explain that to me someday, okay,” Trump said. “But maybe it’s not a bad thing. The easy ones are the ones I maybe don’t like as much or don’t get along with as much.”
Trump also brags about how he handled being impeached, while taking shots at two of his predecessors who also faced impeachment.
“There’s nobody that’s tougher than me,” Trump said. “Nobody’s tougher than me. You asked me about impeachment. I’m under impeachment, and you said, you know, you just act like you won the f***ing race. Nixon was in a corner with his thumb in his mouth. Bill Clinton took it very, very hard. I just do things, okay?”
Video Transcript
[AUDIO LOGO]
DONALD TRUMP: It's funny, the relationships I have, the tougher and meaner they are, the better I get along with them. You'll explain that to me someday, OK? But maybe it's not a bad thing. The easy ones are the ones that I maybe don't like as much or don't get along with as much.
KYLIE MAR: On "Anderson Cooper 360" Tuesday, CNN aired previously unheard audio of former President Donald Trump recorded by Bob Woodward in a series of conversations from 2016 through 2020. Trump, who is currently facing possible legal peril for illegally taking classified documents when he left office, appears in one recording to share sensitive information with Woodward.
DONALD TRUMP: I have built a weapons system that nobody's ever had in this country before. We have stuff that you haven't even seen or heard about. We have stuff that Putin and Xi have never heard about before. Getting along with Russia is a good thing and a bad thing, all right? Especially because they have 1,332 nuclear [BLEEP] warheads.
KYLIE MAR: In another recording, Trump brags about how he handled it being impeached while taking shots at two of his predecessors who also faced impeachment.
DONALD TRUMP: There's nobody that's tougher than me. Nobody's tougher than me. You asked me about impeachment. I'm under impeachment. And you said, you know, just act like you just won the [BLEEP] race. Nixon was in a corner with his thumb in his mouth. Bill Clinton took it very, very hard. I just do things, OK?
KYLIE MAR: And in 2016, Woodward asked then candidate Trump about having his staff sign nondisclosure agreements. Though Trump was confident in the effectiveness of these agreements, a multitude of former officials wrote tell-all books after leaving the administration.
DONALD TRUMP: Corey has one. Hope has one. Did you sign one?
COREY LEWANDOWSKI: Steven has one.
HOPE HICKS: Of course.
DONALD TRUMP: Steven has one.
COREY LEWANDOWSKI: Donny has one.
DONALD TRUMP JR: I don't got one. I'm in the middle of the book, baby.
DONALD TRUMP: I know. I forgot.
COREY LEWANDOWSKI: Donny has two.
DONALD TRUMP: He's the one I'm most worried about.
DONALD TRUMP JR: Yeah, I'm not getting next week's paycheck until I sign one.
BOB WOODWARD: Do you think these are airtight agreements?
DONALD TRUMP: I think they're very airtight.
[AUDIO LOGO]
