New York Times Reporters Decline Comment on Situation Room Tapes

New York Times reporters Jonathan Swan and Maggie Haberman declined on Monday to comment on whether they had access to audio tapes from the Situation Room for their book about President Trump's second term. “We're not going to comment on the tapes,” Swan said during an interview. The reporters also stated they would not discuss sourcing for the book.

An excerpt from the book, titled “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump,” reports that Vice President JD Vance told Cabinet officials to release all files related to Jeffrey Epstein. The excerpt includes direct quotes from Vance, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and White House communications director Steven Cheung.

An April report by the same reporters detailed Trump’s discussions in multiple meetings inside the Situation Room ahead of his decision to launch the war with Iran.

Last week, Vance expressed concern about the possibility of someone leaking audio tapes of Situation Room conversations to the reporters. While speaking to the interviewer, Swan noted no administration officials have denied the reporting for the book, which was released on Tuesday. Haberman said the two worked to ensure their account of the second Trump administration was accurate.

“To have the only comment we have had from the White House so far be, ‘This is... accurate reporting,’ we agree,” Haberman added.