Washington • The White House severely restricted distribution of memos detailing President Donald Trump’s calls with foreign leaders, including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman, after embarrassing leaks of his conversations early in his tenure, a former White House official said.
The White House’s handling of Trump’s calls with foreign leaders is at the heart of House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry. A whistleblower alleges the White House tried to “lock down” Trump’s July 25 phone call with Ukraine’s new president because officials were worried about Trump’s request for help investigating Trump’s Democratic rival Joe Biden.