The defense records have shown that when discussing the 1995 bombing that killed 168 people with his attorneys, McVeigh joked around and occasionally laughed, The Oklahoman said Sunday.

The recently discovered documents also show McVeigh, who was executed for his part in the deadly bombing, told his attorneys he hoped his trial would prove to be an embarrassment for the U.S. government.

Yet the defense records also show McVeigh acknowledged the impact his actions had on others, but was able to ignore it in order to complete his goals.

"He stated that his conscious mind knew that the people killed in the Oklahoma City bombing had families, that the children killed had mothers, and he fully realizes the consequences of his actions, but he was able to 'turn it off' in order to perform his mission," McVeigh's attorneys wrote in the records.

The Oklahoman said the documents showed that prior to being convicted in 1997, McVeigh considered a guilty plea in order to save his co-conspirator, Terry Nichols.