Actually, putting “tapes” in quotes reads more like an admission that he’s fabricating fake evidence.
Jesus Christ, GOP, accept that your party done fucked up and take the hit here. The longer it takes, the worse it’s gonna be for you.
When he babbled earlier about the quotes around wire-tapping, he used that as a justification for making the words broader. So I interpret these quotes as allowing for flash drives, phone voice memos and wax cylinders as the medium, not just tapes. 
In all seriousness, he is making so many mistakes right now that it is hard to keep track, but I think his biggest one has been the creation of one or more Deep Throats by his firing of Comey.
Which would be even better.
Parsing his recent nonsense is difficult. Either he has “tapes” of Comey saying something bad and this is a threat, or he has “tapes” of Comey saying something that are not bad but that he can pretend is bad and his supporters will believe it, or he doesn’t have anything at all and he is hoping that the mere insinuation is sufficient.
The problem is that Comey, having been there, actually knows which of these is true.
He uses quote marks because that lets him say olly olly oxenfree later. Or what he says doesn’t count because the flag in his office has gold fringe. Or something.
Republican white males at that.
Sick ( or bad ) guy. Think if Obama had done this.
And how is that tweet not straight out blackmailing.
Now Comey has only one thing to do. He has to talk to prove that Trump can’t have anything on him. And if Trump produces those ‘‘tapes’’ that’s an impeachable offence, no matter what is on them, right?
The mere insinuation probably is sufficient to convince his supporters that Comey is dishonest in some way. And he doesn’t really care what his opponents think about him.
Are you referring to this: “Trump’s approval among Republicans dropped to just 74 percent, a 14-percentage-point tumble from last month…”
That’s just one poll though. And 74 percent is pretty respectable. Obama’s approval rating among Democrats went down to 75% at times. There just isn’t any truth to the common perception that Republicans don’t like Trump.
But, then Comey knows this. He was there. A bluff doesn’t work if your cards are facing your opponent. It’s pretty easy to call such a bluff, and say, “Go ahead and release your tapes.”
Did anyone else hear/read “tapes” and think “Holy shit, is he trying to be Nixon now?” Fire investigators, check. Tape people, check. It’s like he’s ticking off boxes in a list. (Who uses “tapes” now anyway?)
Approval ratings among Trump’s voting base have been steadily dropping since at least March.
“Most alarming for President Donald Trump, the demographic underpinnings of his support, Republicans, white voters, especially men and those without a college degree, are starting to have doubts,” - Tim Malloy, assistant director of a 1,056-person Quinnipiac University national poll.
Of course he used “tapes” (and in quotes, too), for a reason. He can manipulate those strings like no one else.
At this point, is he trying to get impeached, hoping that the investigations go away after that?
I have no idea what you’re trying to say. He’s manipulating more comparisons to Nixon on purpose? He wants Comey to stay in the news because it’s good for him? He really wants to get subpoenaed? How is any of that useful?
Why not ask Pence for a pardon and just resign for “health reasons”?
Trump thrives on this confusion. He knows there are no tapes. Or “tapes”. But his tweet has you (plural) all discombobulated.
Maybe that’s why “tapes” is in quotes - if Comey calls his bluff, he can say “I don’t actually have an audio recording, I meant something else by ‘tapes’”.
Manipulating those strings into a noose around your own neck, just like the master Nixon himself. Such dexterity.
Nobody knew recording could be so complicated.