Trump administration releases 60,000 more files on RFK assassination
The federal government published more than 60,000 pages of records on Sen. Robert F. Kennedy's assassination late Wednesday — the second tranche of documents to be released on the 1968 slaying.
The releases were ordered by President Trump in January, with backing from the senator's son, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has claimed for years that his father's convicted killer Sirhan Sirhan might be innocent.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence said the documents "have been sitting in various storage facilities across the federal government for decades and had never been digitized or accessible to the public before." They were digitized by ODNI — which is led by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard — and posted on the National Archives website.
"Today's release is an important step toward maximum transparency, finding the truth, and sharing the truth," Gabbard said in a post on Truth Social.
Mr. Trump has also ordered the release of documents on President John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1968 killing. Some John F. Kennedy files were released in March, but the King documents have not been released.
What's in the RFK files — and will we learn anything new?
ODNI said the documents posted Wednesday include "never-before-seen details about the FBI's investigation into the assassination of RFK — including the discussion of potential leads by various FBI offices, internal FBI memos detailing the progress of the case, and more."
The records also include recordings of Los Angeles police interviews with Sirhan and eyewitnesses to the 1968 assassination, according to ODNI.
But it's unclear whether the files will reveal new information about Robert F. Kennedy's killing.
The senator's 1968 assassination was primarily investigated and prosecuted by authorities in Los Angeles. Documents from the local investigation — along with many records from a separate FBI probe — have been publicly available in California's state archives since the late 1980s. ODNI said some of the records that were published Wednesday had previously been handed over to the Los Angeles Police Department.
What did last month's RFK files say?
The government released a trove of 10,000 records on Robert F. Kennedy last month. A CBS News review found the documents included handwritten notes from Sirhan — including ones in which Sirhan wrote "RFK must be disposed of like his brother was" — as well as FBI memos on Sirhan, crime scene and autopsy photos, witness interviews and other materials.
A few of those records make reference to common conspiracy theories about the assassination, including mentions of witnesses seeing a woman in a polka-dot dress or somebody shouting "we shot him." Other witnesses said they didn't see anybody matching that description.
Many of the details in those files were already publicly known.
Who killed RFK — and what has RFK Jr. said?
Sirhan was convicted of killing Robert F. Kennedy — then a Democratic presidential primary candidate — at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. He was arrested shortly after the shooting and he was 24 years old at the time. Sirhan has admitted to killing the senator at various points, sometimes claiming it was due to the senator's support for Israel, though at other times, Sirhan has said he is innocent or said he couldn't remember the incident.
Sirhan has been incarcerated in California for decades, and multiple requests for parole have been unsuccessful. The state's parole board endorsed his 2021 bid for parole, but California's Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom rejected the request.
The case has drawn public fascination for decades, with some observers claiming Sirhan didn't fire the fatal shots or acted as part of a wider conspiracy. They often cite conflicting eyewitness testimonies or the alleged presence of extra bullets — though many others have backed the view that Sirhan acted alone.
One of the skeptics is Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was 14 years old when his father was assassinated. He has argued Sirhan wasn't responsible for the killing, and met with him in prison before backing his 2021 request for parole.
However, other members of the Kennedy family have staunchly opposed Sirhan's release from prison.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
39 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Podcast Bro Theo Von Questions How 'America First' Trump Really Is Amid Potential Iran War
Popular podcast host Theo Von joined Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna (Calif.) Friday in taking a hard stance against potential U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict. Khanna appeared on Von's podcast 'This Past Weekend' to discuss several topics, from foreign affairs to AI. At one point in the segment, Khanna promoted the War Powers Resolution, a bipartisan bill he introduced with Republican Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.) aimed at prohibiting U.S. armed forces from unauthorized hostilities in Iran. During his discussion with Von, Khanna noted several people in MAGA's base who have been vocal about the U.S. not going to war with Iran, including Tucker Carlson and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.). Von agreed with the two conservatives, stating, 'this is a horrible idea.' 'Yeah, people say, 'Well, you don't know a ton about the Middle East.' Like, that's fine. I don't want people I know, my friends, getting called up. I don't want the children of my friends getting called over to die,' Von said. 'I don't even understand how it's an option.' Von, who had Donald Trump on his podcast last year, helped the president reach younger male voters during the 2024 presidential election. Khanna remarked on the influence of Von's interview with Trump, stating the podcaster made the president 'the most human that I've actually seen him,' after the two opened up about the president's brother, alcoholism and cocaine. Last month, Von performed a controversial comedy act at a military base in Qatar before Trump addressed U.S. and Qatari troops. The podcast host has seemingly gotten closer to the Trump family, even having dinner with Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, after they attended his comedy show in Miami. Miami looked good on you @TheoVon ! Come back and visit us soon !😎 — Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) May 14, 2025 Now, however, Von is beginning to question the 'America First' claims that Trump made during his campaign. When Khanna asked Von if he knew anyone who was supporting the idea of the U.S. going to war with Iran, Von responded, 'Nobody.' I asked @TheoVon if he knows anyone who says we should go to war with Nobody. I feel like it was supposed to be America first. — Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) June 20, 2025 Von went on to tell Khanna that 'it feels like we are just working for Israel,' and that he believes a lot of Americans are beginning to feel 'disillusioned' by U.S. leaders. 'I felt like it was supposed to be America first, like, we're focusing on, like, 'What are we doing to get things back into America,' right? To like, increase like the purpose of being an American, to refill our hearts with blood and ... make us feel something again here, and make us be excited about being an American,' Von said. JD Vance Tells Theo Von Musk Made A 'Huge Mistake' Going After Trump Exclusive: Israel Seeks Swift Action On Iran, Sources Say, With A Split U.S. Administration Trump Says He Should've Gotten 5 Nobel Peace Prizes While Continuing To Weigh Iran Strikes
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Christina Bohannan makes third run for Iowa's 1st Congressional District
Jun. 21—History shows that just because a candidate makes multiple attempts to win an election doesn't mean they can't eventually pull through. U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks lost a number of times to Dave Loebsack before winning Iowa's 1st Congressional District seat in a close 2020 election. Now her past Democratic challenger, Christina Bohannan, is attempting the same thing for the 2026 election cycle, provided she is the favorite in the primary. On June 17, Bohannan announced her campaign to take on Miller-Meeks once again. In a press release, her campaign said Bohannan nearly defeated Miller-Meeks in 2024 — less than 800 votes decided the election — and that the Democrat "outworked, outraised and outmatched her." Bohannan said, "Mariannette Miller-Meeks has had three terms in Congress — three chances to do right by the people of Iowa. Instead, she has taken over $4 million from corporate special interests and done nothing but vote their way. And she has put partisan politics over Iowans again and again. From cutting billions of dollars from Medicaid in the Trump Administration's One Big Beautiful Bill, to siding with DOGE's cuts to Social Security and enabling unelected, unaccountable billionaires like Elon Musk, Bohannan said the Republican congresswoman has forgotten about her constituents. "It's time someone put Iowa first," Bohannan said. Bohannan went on to say Miller-Meeks needs to explain "why she keeps putting Washington special interests first." The Democratic challenger claimed Miller-Meeks supported Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, repeatedly voted for cost-increasing tariffs and is a member of the DOGE Caucus. Bohannan previously worked as an engineer and taught at the University of Iowa College of Law for 20 years. She also worked as an elected legislator for the Iowa House, defeating a 20-year incumbent in District 85. Bohannan is running for Congress because she believes in a government that works for the people. In May, another Democrat announced he would be running for Iowa's 1st Congressional District. Bob Krause, a former legislator who also tried running for U.S. Senate, announced his campaign with the slogan "Flip The House With Krause." Krause said Miller-Meeks votes "like Trump's rubber stamp." Travis Terrell, a Democrat from Johnson County, also announced his bid for Iowa's 1st Congressional District race. His campaign page on Facebook notes he is a working-class, New Deal Democrat fighting for healthcare, fair wages and a government that serves other working-class people and not billionaires. In addition to Miller-Meeks likely running for the seat, fellow Republican and former primary challenger David Pautsch announced in February that he would also be running for the seat. Pautsch touts himself as a MAGA Republican. He has been critical of Miller-Meeks, saying she is not conservative enough.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Senator Alex Padilla calls out JD Vance for wrongly calling him ‘José': ‘The Vice President knows my name'
Senator Alex Padilla called out Vice President JD Vance for — he claims — intentionally getting his first name wrong when he was giving comments about Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Los Angeles. During a visit to LA on Friday to inspect President Donald Trump's domestic troop deployment, Vance called Padilla "José." 'Well, I was hoping José Padilla would be here to ask a question, but unfortunately, I guess he decided not to show up because there wasn't the theater, and that's all it is,' Vance said. He was referring to Padilla being dragged out of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's June 12 press conference, pulled to the ground and handcuffed. The senator said in a comment on X that the vice president knows his name, and called the remark a "petty slight." "The Vice President knows my name. But that's not the point," Padilla wrote. "He should be focused on removing the thousands of unnecessary troops from the streets of Los Angeles, not petty slights." He also shared a clip of a MSNBC news program he appeared on in which he said Vance should be spending his time learning more about the effects of the ICE raids and speaking with families who are being "terrorized" by the federal agents. In the clip, Padilla challenges Vance to talk to the Marines and National Guard members who he says do not want to be stationed in LA, to the city officials and the LA sheriff whose jobs, he says, have been made more difficult by the presence of the military in the city, or to fire victims who have still not received federal aid. "We've got a lot of important work to do, but this is how the vice president chooses to act," he said. 'Sadly, it's just an indicator of how petty and unserious this administration is ... you'd think he'd take the situation in Los Angeles more seriously.' Padilla and Vance served together in the 100-member U.S. Senate between January 2021 and January 2025. As vice-president, Vance is now president of the Senate. Padilla wasn't the only one unimpressed by Vance's comments in LA. The city's mayor, Karen Bass, called his commentary "an attempt to provoke division and conflict" and that he spent his time "spewing lies and utter nonsense." 'We were able to handle the violence and the vandalism that occurred,' Bass said. 'Our streets have been peaceful, and even when there was vandalism at its height, you are talking about a couple hundred people who were not necessarily associated with any of the peaceful protests.' She also accused Vance of disrespecting the senator by calling him the wrong name. 'How dare you disrespect our senator?' she said during a press conference. 'The last time I checked, the vice president of the United States is the president of the U.S. Senate. You serve with him today, and how dare you disrespect him and call him José? But I guess he just looked like anybody to you. Well, he's not just anybody to us. He is our senator.' Governor Gavin Newsom also waded into the fight, implying that Vance was being intentionally dismissive and disrespectful to the senator. 'JD Vance served with Alex Padilla in the United States Senate,' the governor wrote on X. 'Calling him 'José Padilla' is not an accident.'
