US Secret Service says it does not have Trump tapes

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The Secret Service on Monday confirmed to Anadolu Agency it does not have any recordings of President Donald Trump's conversations.

The department provided Anadolu Agency with a copy of its response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request originally filed by the Wall Street Journal news outlet.

"It appears, from a review of Secret Service's main indices, that there are no records pertaining to your request that are referenced in these indices," the Secret Service wrote.

The agency is tasked with protecting the president and did not rule out other government agencies could have carried out recordings.

The issue of recorded Trump conversations was raised by the president when he threatened ousted FBI Director James Comey with potential "tapes" of their conversations after Trump abruptly fired the bureau’s chief.

Since posting the provocative tweet last month, Trump and his White House aides have been coy as to whether such recordings exist.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Secret Service handled recordings for past presidents, including Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy.

It said any recordings normally would be governed by the Presidential Records Act, and would be handed over to the National Archives upon completion of the president's term.