President Donald Trump may just have pulled the veil back from some of America’s most coveted and secret documents.
Trump signed an executive order on Thursday, which will declassify several closely-guarded government documents related to the assassinations of former President John F. Kennedy, his brother, and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, and civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. The news comes days after celebrating King Jr.’s birthday— MLK Day which occurred on Jan. 20 this year, is considered a federal holiday.
READ: Trump stages a triumphant return to power (January 20, 2025)
Reportedly, the order essentially requires the nation’s security organizations to create plans to release the records. The decision may very well put to rest thousands of conspiracy theories regarding some of the most infamous assassinations in the country’s history.
This executive order comes out of left field, especially as it is sandwiched between some of the most egregious and controversial orders to be signed in the nation’s history.
“A lot of people were waiting for this . . . for years, for decades,” said Trump in signing the release of the documents. “Everything will be revealed.”
What did the executive order on declassifying JFK files say?
On Jan. 23, President Donald Trump issued an executive order mandating the full declassification and release of records related to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Despite the 1992 Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act requiring the disclosure of these records by 2017, many documents have been withheld due to redactions.
Trump acknowledged that continued withholding of information about Kennedy’s assassination no longer serves the public interest. Although no law mandates the release of records regarding the other two assassinations, the president also determined that releasing these records is in the public’s interest.
READ: Indian American lawmakers pay tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. (January 16, 2018)
The order directs the Director of National Intelligence and the Attorney General to present a plan for the full release of Kennedy-related records within 15 days. For the records related to the other two assassinations, a plan must be presented within 45 days.
The order does not affect the authority of executive departments and agencies but requires them to comply with the new declassification efforts. The disclosure is to be carried out in accordance with applicable law, and the order does not grant any enforceable legal rights. The goal is to ensure transparency and public access to these historical records.