Trump Backs Release of Long-Classified JFK Assassination Files

President Donald Trump on Saturday provisionally backed the release of more than 3,000 classified files related to the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy.

“Subject to the receipt of further information, I will be allowing, as President, the long blocked and classified JFK FILES to be opened,” Trump tweeted.

The National Archive was scheduled to make the files public on its website by Oct. 26 pending the approval of the president, as stipulated under the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992.

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/921716470140325889

Also Read: 5 JFK Conspiracy Theories on His 100th Birthday (Photos)

Most of the documents are believed to date from the 1960s and 1970s in the years just after the assassination, according to USA Today, but dozens more were generated by federal agencies in the 1990s following the release of Oliver Stone’s 1991 movie “JFK” that floated many conspiracy theories about the official investigation.

Experts who have studied the assassination told The Washington Post that some of the documents are believed to include information about the extent the CIA knew about Oswald’s connection to the Cubans and Soviets.

Trump has proffered his own conspiracy theories about Kennedy’s killing, even suggesting the idea during last year’s presidential campaign that the father of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) had connections with Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. Cruz and his family vehemently denied the allegations.

5 JFK Conspiracy Theories on His 100th Birthday (Photos)

Sadly, President John. F. Kennedy, who would have turned 100 today, will always be remembered not just for his life but for the circumstances of his death. Here are five JFK conspiracy theories.
TheWrap
1. It was the Soviet Union

The 1960s marked an intense time in the Cold War between the U.S. and USSR. Bryan Ghent, an expert in the assassination of John F. Kennedy at Winthrop University, told NBC News that some believe Oswald was replaced by a Soviet agent and sent back to the U.S. to assassinate the president. Ghent added that others say that Soviet officials wanted Kennedy dead after Nikita Khrushchev aligned with Fidel Castro following the Cuban Missile Crisis.
WikiCommons
2. It was Cuba

Oswald was enamored with Castro and began circulating pro-Castro leaflets in New Orleans, PBS's Frontline wrote. According to Brian Latell, former CIA agent and author of "Castro's Secrets: The CIA and Cuba's Intelligence Machine," just weeks before the assassination, Oswald left the Cuban Consulate yelling, "I'm going to kill Kennedy."
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3. It was the mob

Some believe that Kennedy's death was at the hands of the mafia. National Geographic explored whether Kennedy's failure to overthrow Castro -- who closed many of the mob's casinos in Havana – was a motive for his assassination.
WikiCommons
4. It was Lyndon Johnson

ABC News has summarized the theory that the vice president had the most to gain, and secretly worked with members of the CIA to pull off the assassination. Adding fuel to that fire, CNN wrote that Madeline Brown, a woman who claimed to have had an affair with Johnson, also claimed that hours before JFK's death, Johnson told her, "After tomorrow, those Kennedys will never embarrass me again. That's no threat. That's a promise."
WikiCommons
It was the CIA

According to the book "CIA Rogues and the Killing of the Kennedys: How and Why US Agents Conspired to Assassinate JFK and RFK," the 1960s were dark days for the CIA: "Evidence shows conclusively that both plots were based on a cunning variation of an appalling CIA operation … the program utilized an unwitting fall guy in conjunction with hidden sharpshooters."
The government's explanation? Oswald acted alone, and didn't conspire with anyone.
If you enjoyed this gallery, you might also like this look at 15 actors who portrayed JFK, from Patrick Dempsey to Rob Lowe.

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President John F. Kennedy will always be remembered not just for his life, but for the mystery surrounding his death

Sadly, President John. F. Kennedy, who would have turned 100 today, will always be remembered not just for his life but for the circumstances of his death. Here are five JFK conspiracy theories.

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5 JFK Conspiracy Theories on His 100th Birthday (Photos)

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