Hold onto your hats Boys & Girls, Trump's releasing the final JFK files!

[Lance Payette]

I'll take a leap and ask 'What could be embarrassing so as to warrant keeping them hidden so long?'  My guess is the records contain a critical assessment of the Secret Service's performance that day and the night before.

You could well be right, or at least correct that what we're talking about are things of that level.

On the other hand, take a look at the zero-response thread I started on "The JKA records: a bit of perspective." The CIA didn't declassify the last of its WORLD WAR ONE records until 2011, and umpteen World War Two records are still classified. What, you or I might ask, could POSSIBLY warrant World War One records continuing to be classified almost 100 years after the end of the war? What makes sense within the walls of a secretive government agency is not necessarily what makes sense outside those walls.

[Richard Smith]

I'll take a leap and ask 'What could be embarrassing so as to warrant keeping them hidden so long?'  My guess is the records contain a critical assessment of the Secret Service's performance that day and the night before.

I think the Secret Service agents were in an impossible position, but any deficiencies were apparent to anyone who has reviewed the Z-film and case.  Slow or no reaction to the first shot.  Those were different times, though.  Less training and fewer resources.  Even so, it would have been difficult under the circumstances to have made any difference.  Oswald held all the advantages.  The element of surprise firing from an elevated concealed location behind the agents with a clear line of sight to the target.  Intelligence agencies are naturally secretive.  They see no advantage but lots of risk in being transparent.  This gives the appearance of hiding something when they are just being overly paranoid. It takes someone with a strong hand to force them to be more transparent.  Thankfully Trump has now done that.

[Steve M. Galbraith]

Question: Does anyone know where this 80,000 number comes from? "Assassination-related" documents? According to the National Archives site, there are about 3000 documents with redactions and about 60 that are withheld in full.

Here's the NARA list of fully withheld documents: https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/withheld-in-full-list

There are another 3000 or so with names blocked out. So this 80,000 is from where?

[Michael Capasse]

The only one I heard say 80,000 was Trump. 
For what it's worth

[Steve M. Galbraith]

Reportedly there's a last minute review being done on about 400-500 of the documents. And the documents include material related to the JFK, RFK, MLK assassinations and "possibly others"? I assume that's Malcolm X?

Link/story: https://www.reuters.com/legal/us-justice-department-orders-national-security-lawyers-review-jfk-documents-2025-03-18/

[Louis Earl]

Well . . . you'd think that if there was any scenario the SS should have trained for its was an attack on the POTUS while riding in a convertible down a city street.   

[Jarrett Smith]

Well . . . you'd think that if there was any scenario the SS should have trained for its was an attack on the POTUS while riding in a convertible down a city street.

They were hungover from the night before. Clint Hill's account of the shooting and his actions are BS, but he did have guilt about it.

[Richard Smith]

Well . . . you'd think that if there was any scenario the SS should have trained for its was an attack on the POTUS while riding in a convertible down a city street.

The secret service of 1963 was nothing like that of today in terms of resources.  The agents were older, fewer, and had a much more difficult task protecting the president riding on a preannounced route in an open car.  The question was not if but when something like this was going to happen.  There was really not much they could have done.  They had a few seconds to reach the car and shield JFK.  Likely getting killed in the process.  They certainly could have done a better job but not likely to change the outcome.