Trump tweeted that he 'wanted to share with Russia.' The White House denies Trump ever said he shared information.

White House and National Security Council spokesman Mike Anton insisted Tuesday morning that President Trump was not confirming that he shared classified information with Russian officials when he tweeted that he'd "wanted to share with Russia" information about "terrorism and airline flight safety":
CBS News' Mark Knoller did not report whether Anton — notorious for his essay last year declaring "2016 is the Flight 93 election: Charge the cockpit or you die" — provided an explanation for how Trump's tweet defending his "absolute right" to share information did not amount to a confirmation. The president does have the legal right to unilaterally declassify information.
Trump's top aides as well as his national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, have denied The Washington Post's report that Trump shared highly classified information during a meeting at the White House last week with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Trump's tweets Tuesday morning came after his staff's ardent denials Monday evening.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'Alaska has the resources, but America needs the will'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Nvidia hits $4 trillion milestone
Speed Read The success of the chipmaker has been buoyed by demand for artificial intelligence
-
X CEO Yaccarino quits after two years
Speed Read Elon Musk hired Linda Yaccarino to run X in 2023
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked call
Speed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side deal
The pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska