JFK Files: Trump Releases New Documents

President Donald Trump has officially released what his administration claims to be all classified files related to the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Tens of thousands of pages, previously withheld or heavily redacted, are now publicly available through the National Archives.

The release is part of Trump’s executive order aimed at promoting maximum transparency concerning the assassinations of JFK, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr..

The JFK Files: What Are They?

Historians are currently going through the just made public documents, but some preliminary findings have surfaced:

• The Soviet Connections of Lee Harvey Oswald: Oswald’s experience in the Soviet Union and the KGB’s evaluation of him were noted in an intelligence report from 1991. Oswald’s weak shooting skills and erratic conduct led Soviet officials to conclude that he was not a KGB spy.
• Conspiracy Theories Examined: Some articles discuss Cold War tensions and ask if Fidel Castro supported communist projects in Latin America.
• Oswald’s Monitoring: Prior to the murder, Oswald was being observed in Mexico City, according to declassified CIA documents.
• CIA and FBI Actions: Files detail the intelligence community’s internal investigations and efforts to assess whether Oswald acted alone.

Unresolved Issues

Many historians and academics remain skeptical despite the document deluge. Some materials remain confidential for legal and national security reasons. It is also expected that formerly confidential IRS and FBI information would be released in the coming months.

Analysis and Public Reaction

Experts investigating the JFK assassination have praised the publication, with scholar Jefferson Morley describing it as “an encouraging start.” Only around one-third of the remaining redacted papers, though, have been made public thus far.

Historians expect to learn more about the Warren Commission’s inquiry and the assassination when the papers are examined in greater detail.

The National Archives website allows the public to examine the whole files.

Source: USA Today