U.S. President Donald Trump has directed top administration officials to formulate a plan to declassify documents related to three of the most pivotal assassinations in American history: the killings of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr. The order, signed during a ceremony at the White House, stipulates that officials present the declassification strategy within 15 days.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump remarked, “A lot of people have been waiting for this, for years, for decades. And everything will be revealed.” His directive aims to address public demand for transparency and to shed light on historical events that continue to generate intense speculation.
John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas in 1963, followed by his brother Robert F. Kennedy’s killing in California in 1968 while campaigning for the presidency. Just two months prior, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in Memphis, Tennessee. While investigations over the years have disclosed many details, thousands of documents remain redacted or classified, especially concerning the JFK assassination.
Lee Harvey Oswald, a Marine veteran with ties to the Soviet Union, was officially identified as JFK’s lone assassin by a government commission. However, this conclusion has been widely questioned, fueling theories implicating government agents, the mafia, and other entities. Public opinion polls consistently reveal skepticism about Oswald acting alone.
The 1992 JFK Records Act mandated the release of all related documents by 2017. While Trump and President Joe Biden released significant portions, many files remain partially or entirely withheld, allegedly at the request of the CIA and FBI. Trump’s latest order emphasizes that continued secrecy is “not consistent with the public interest.”
JFK assassination expert Jefferson Morley welcomed the announcement but highlighted uncertainties about implementation. “Details and execution are crucial,” Morley stated, adding that while recent document releases revealed the CIA’s monitoring of Oswald, a full release might not provide a definitive “smoking gun.”
In 2023, new testimony from former Secret Service agent Paul Landis further complicated the narrative. Landis claimed to have removed a bullet from Kennedy’s car, contradicting the “single-bullet theory” linking the president and Texas Governor John Connally’s injuries.
During the signing, Trump handed the ceremonial pen to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., RFK’s son and nominee for health secretary. Kennedy Jr., a longtime skeptic of official narratives regarding his uncle and father’s assassinations, hailed the decision as a significant step toward accountability.
