>>> WE CANNOT TRUST ADMINISTRATION WITH RESPECT TO
ANYTHING THAT IT PRODUCES.
SO THERE ARE A COUPLE OF ISSUES
HERE.
HERE. THERE IS THE ISSUE OF THE
TRANSCRIPT BEING THE ONLY
TRANSCRIPT OF THE CONVERSATION,
WHETHER THERE ARE OTHER READOUTS
OF THE CONVERSATION AND WHETHER
THEY CHERRY PICKED THE BEST
READOUT OF THE CONVERSATION.
>> JOINING OUR DISCUSSION WAS
THE CHIEF OF STAFF TO THE
DIRECTOR OF THE CIA DURING THE
BUSH ADMINISTRATION AND THEN HE
WENT ON TO BECOME THE DIRECTOR
OF THE WHITE HOUSE SITUATION
ROOM FOR PRESIDENT OBAMA.
HE LISTENED IN ON PRESIDENT
OBAMA’S PHONE CALLS WITH HEADS
OF STATE AND PREPARED THE
WRITTEN RECORDS OF THOSE PHONE
CALLS.
CALLS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR JOINING
US TONIGHT.
US TONIGHT. YOU JUST HEARD WHAT ADAM SHIF
SAID.
SAID. HOW WOULD YOU ADVISE HIM IN
EVALUATING WHAT IS RELEASED
TOMORROW?
TOMORROW? WHAT CAN WE EXPECT TO BE
RELEASED TOMORROW?
RELEASED TOMORROW? >> THANK YOU, LAWRENCE.
THE SITUATION ROOM HELPS SET UP,
MONITOR AND WRITES UP THE
TRANSCRIPT OF THE PHONE CALLS,
AT LEAST HISTORICALLY THAT’S
WHAT THEY HAVE DONE.
I’M NOT FROM THE TRUMP WHITE
HOUSE.
HOUSE. THE TRANSCRIPTS ARE FINALIZED BY
A MEMBER OF THE NSC DIRECTORATE
STAFF RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CALL.
THAT BECOMES THE FINAL
TRANSCRIPT.
TRANSCRIPT. IF THAT IS WHAT IS RELEASED, I’D
LIKE TO THINK THAT IT WILL BE AS
ACCURATE A TRANSCRIPT AS THEY
COULD HAVE.
COULD HAVE. IF IT APPEARS TO BE ANYTHING
LESS THAN ACCURATE, THERE ARE
THOSE ORIGINAL ROUGH TRANSCRIPTS
THAT WERE DONE BY THE SITUATION
ROOM STAFF.
ROOM STAFF. >> SO THERE ARE NO RECORDINGS OF
THE PHONE CALLS?
>> NOT UNLESS PROCEDURES HAVE
CHANGED IN THE LAST FEW YEARS.
WHEN I ARRIVED, THAT WAS ONE OF
MY FIRST QUESTIONS WHEN I HEARD
THIS TRANSCRIPTION PROCEDURE WE
HAD.
HAD. MY FIRST QUESTION IS WHY AREN’T
WE RECORDING THE CALLS.
I WAS TOLD THAT WAS SOMETHING WE
STOPPED DOING IN THE MID 1970s.
>> AFTER THE NIXON TAPES BROUGHT
DOWN THE PRESIDENT.
>> CORRECT.
>> CORRECT. >> SO THESE ARE HAND WRITTEN
NOTES THAT PEOPLE ARE -- HOW
MANY PEOPLE ARE TAKING THE NOTES
AS THE SPEAKERS ARE TALKING?
>> SO NORMALLY ON A GOOD DAY, I
WOULD ASSIGN THREE PEOPLE TO
LISTEN IN THE PHONE CALL.
THEY SIT THERE WITH HEAD PHONES
ON AND HAMMERING AWAY.
THEY COMPARE THE TRANSCRIPTS
BECAUSE ONE PERSON MAY HAVE
HEARD SOMETHING THE OTHER PERSON
DIDN’T OR UNDERSTOOD SOMETHING
THE OTHER PERSON DIDN’T.
THEY WOULD CREATE A FINAL
WORKING TRANSCRIPT THAT WOULD BE
PROVIDED TO THE DIRECTORATE,
SOMEBODY WHO PROBABLY HAS A
DEEPER EXPERTISE ON THE TOPICS
BEING DISCUSSED TO MAKE FINAL
CORRECTIONS.
CORRECTIONS. THE FINAL MEMO THAT WOULD BE
ISSUED COULD VARY FROM CALL TO
CALL AND ADMINISTRATION TO
ADMINISTRATION.
ADMINISTRATION. IT COULD BE EVERYTHING FROM A
VERBATUM TRANSCRIPT MUCH LIKE
WHAT WE HAD PRODUCED FROM THE
SITUATION ROOM ALL THE WAY TO A
SUMMARY, SOMETIMES A SHORT
SUMMARY OF THE PHONE CALL.
IT JUST VARIED.
>> DO OTHER COUNTRIES RECORD THE
PHONE CALL?
PHONE CALL? AND DO WE KNOW IF THE OTHER
COUNTRY IS RECORDING THE PHONE
CALL?
CALL? >> WE DON’T SPECIFICALLY KNOW.
WE DON’T ASK.
I DO KNOW OF ONE INSTANCE WHEN A
FOREIGN HEAD OF STATE RECORDED A
PHONE CALL MUCH TO OUR SURPRISE,
BUT WE GENERALLY EXPECT THAT
IT’S POSSIBLE.
IT’S POSSIBLE. SO IT COULD BE DONE.
BUT IT’S HARD FOR ME TO SAY WITH
CERTAINTY.
CERTAINTY. >> WHEN YOU SEE WHAT’S RELEASED
TOMORROW, WILL YOU BE ABLE TO
MAKE A JUDGMENT ABOUT THE LIKELY
ACCURACY OF WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING
AT?
AT? >> YOU KNOW, IF ONE READS IT AND
IT SOUNDS LIKE PEOPLE TALKING
WITH THE STARTS AND STOPS AND
THE CHANGES IN DIRECTION IN A
CONVERSATION, JUST THOSE NATURAL
PAUSES LIKE I’M DOING RIGHT NOW
AS I TALK TO YOU, I THINK ONE
COULD SURMISE IT’S PRETTY DARN
ACCURATE.
ACCURATE. I THINK IF IT READS MORE LIKE
ELEGANT PROSE, IT IS PROBABLY
SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN MASSAGED
A BIT.
A BIT. I THINK IF IT IS JUST SHORT
SUMMATIONS, IF I’M RECEIVING THE
TRANSCRIPT I WOULD PROBABLY WANT
TO SEE MORE THAN JUST A SUMMARY.
>> CAN’T WAIT TO GET YOUR