FBI/INTELLIGENCE/JUSTICE DEPARTMENT/RUSSIA INVESTIGATION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “In a rare retreat, President Trump on Friday [9-21-18] reversed himself and said he was no longer demanding that documents related to the Russia investigation be immediately declassified and released to the public. Taking to Twitter on Friday morning, Mr. Trump said that instead of an immediate release, Justice Department officials would review the documents, adding that ‘in the end I can always declassify if it proves necessary.’ Less than a week ago, Mr. Trump had ordered that law enforcement and intelligence agencies declassify and release the documents, which include text messages about the Russia inquiry, along with other documents related to the surveillance of a former Trump aide. A White House statement on Monday said the president had called for the ‘immediate declassification’ of pages of an application to wiretap Carter Page, his former campaign official, and all F.B.I. reports about the bureau’s interviews with Bruce G. Ohr, a Justice Department official who had knowledge of the Russia investigation.”
–Michael D. Shear and Katie Benner, “In Reversal, Trump No Longer Demands Declassification of Russia Documents,” The New York Times online, September 21, 2018