FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

User avatar
mister_coffee
Posts: 1388
Joined: Thu Jul 16, 2020 7:35 pm
Location: Winthrop, WA
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by mister_coffee »

Yep.

Also, there are clear markings on classified documents. Part of the process of declassifying a document is removing those markings and placing a declassification stamp on those documents. If those things aren't done the document is still classified.

This also leaves out the fact that classified nuclear weapons secrets have to be declassified with a different process and the President can't just declassify them by saying they are declassified.

The whole thing about the declassification also contradicts with the claim that evidence was planted. Why would the FBI plant declassified documents?
:arrow: David Bonn :idea:
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

Jim Wright:
'"Trump declassified the documents"
Say that's true. It's not, but let's say it is.
HOW DO THE NON-TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE DOCUMENTS KNOW THEY ARE DECLASSIFIED?
Because those people will go to jail for mishandling classified material BUT ALSO for not releasing declassified material when requested by the public under the Freedom of Information Act.
So, how do they KNOW? How did Trump inform THEM that he "declassified" the docs? How? How do they know which documents to protect and which ones to release?
Tell me, what does a declassified document look like?
Do you know?
If you look at the documents right now, and they are still marked as classified, complete with codewords, how do you know they are declassified?
How? Be specific, show your work, including the proper references.
If you're the news media, a so-called journalist, these are the answers you should be demanding from those alleged "experts" you keep putting on your shows and allowing to babble on without question or pushback.
This is your goddamn duty to the Republic.
Get after it.
just-jim
Posts: 614
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2022 8:24 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by just-jim »

D8FDE7D4-A136-4FFA-B6F2-AEF0BB406971.jpeg
just-jim
Posts: 614
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2022 8:24 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by just-jim »

Can we please all agree that this experiment of giving a dumb TV host and shady real estate developer with no government experience, 6 bankruptcies, 68 charges of sexual assault, 7,300 lawsuits, and $1,000,000,000 in debt our nuclear secrets did not go well at all?

And the Saudis gave Jared Kushner 2$ Billion for….?

I suspect this investigation has been going on for a loooog time:


CD5159F6-61AB-4369-A01F-6051AD8088CF.png

It’s over for guilty little donnie. He may avoid prison, but he’s done for….

tic
toc….
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

According to the search warrant Trump is under investigation for violations of the Espionage Act.

https://thehill.com/policy/national-sec ... h-warrant/
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

Nuclear docs are game changers. They carry heavier classifications and cannot be declassified by a president, he has only 1 of 2 keys. Also, it came to light in '18 that Trump/Jared/Flynn were interested in sharing nuclear info with the Saudis...

https://www.emptywheel.net/2022/08/12/t ... ve-stolen/
just-jim
Posts: 614
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2022 8:24 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by just-jim »

…..so, so appropriate! From 2016.

3F101DFC-672A-448D-9B8E-D5ED2D6D1A0F.jpeg
just-jim
Posts: 614
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2022 8:24 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by just-jim »

If you haven’t heard of ‘The Lincoln Project’, it is a group of honest Republicans that raises money to produce ads to further derail guilty little donnie. They have done quite a number of these ads…they are high quality and well produced.

Their latest is spot on: https://twitter.com/ProjectLincoln/stat ... 6358335489
User avatar
mister_coffee
Posts: 1388
Joined: Thu Jul 16, 2020 7:35 pm
Location: Winthrop, WA
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by mister_coffee »

Apparently there are rumblings that the classified documents in question pertained to nuclear weapons or nuclear war plans.

Just off the top of my head, I doubt he was keeping them as a memento. His intention was to use them as either an insurance policy or to sell them to the highest bidder. Which is just evil.

Note that if you or I were rolled up by the FBI with such documents in our possession, the FBI would lock us in a room and throw away the room.
:arrow: David Bonn :idea:
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

Merrick Garland's DoJ just called Trump's bluff.
By announcing that the DoJ had filed a motion to unseal the Search Warrant as well as list of items retrieved from the Mar a Lago search on Monday, he also noted that they have given Trump's team the opportunity to weigh in before the judge signs an order.
While the search warrant and attachment remained sealed the Right has had the opportunity to spin this as an unfair search. But now that it's come to light that the DoJ tried for many months to do this the nice way, including months ago issuing a subpoena for the items, they recognized (WSJ speculates there's a mole in Trump's inner circle) that time was of the essence, that the nice way wasn't producing all the evidence they were told was there.
So the Right's spin machine just had Garland pour some sugar into its gas tank. He's brought the receipts and if Trump's team objects to the full disclosure of the DoJ's reasons for the search it will be an abject admission of knowledge of guilt.
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

CNN: m
ore information coming to light

https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/11/politics ... index.html
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

User avatar
mister_coffee
Posts: 1388
Joined: Thu Jul 16, 2020 7:35 pm
Location: Winthrop, WA
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by mister_coffee »

I doubt very much that we'll ever know exactly what classified information was in Trump's possession. And if it is, say, about sources and methods used to gather intelligence against somebody who doesn't like us very much, that is a Good Thing.
:arrow: David Bonn :idea:
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

Observations from EmptyWheel

August 10, 2022/4 Comments/in Leak Investigations /by emptywheel
Everyone is squabbling over whether DOJ should release more information on the search of Mar-a-Lago, with entirely reasonable people saying they want DOJ to have to defend taking documents the government owns so we can learn more about what went down.

But we may get more clarity more easily than that. That’s because, if DOJ has any intention of actually charging Donald Trump for stealing classified information, then obtaining specific documents he stole may be one of the last things they need to do before charging him.

As I noted here and here, one of the statutes that’s likely on the table for the Former President is 18 USC 793(e), basically taking national defense information you’re not authorized to have and refusing to give it back.

Whoever having unauthorized possession of, access to, or control over any document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, instrument, appliance, or note relating to the national defense, or information relating to the national defense which information the possessor has reason to believe could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicates, delivers, transmits or causes to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, or attempts to communicate, deliver, transmit or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted the same to any person not entitled to receive it, or willfully retains the same and fails to deliver it to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it;

Regular readers of this site are familiar with this statute because I’ve covered tons of cases charging it: Reality Winner and Hal Martin and Joshua Schulte, among others.

But I went back and some pattern jury instructions for the unlawful retention charge, and because of that meeting in June, DOJ has most of what they’d need to charge the Former President.

Here’s what jurors would be asked to decide:

Did the defendant, without authorization, have possession of, access to, or control over a document that was National Defense Information?

Yes. The Archives spent a year telling him he was not authorized to have it under the Presidential Records Act.

Did the document in question relate to the national defense?

We don’t know what the documents in question are, but given WaPo’s description in February, then absolutely.

Bonus fact: The jury decides if something was NDI, not the former Original Classification Authority (the fancy term for, “the President gets to decide whether something is classified or not”). So if the agency whose document Trump stole is still trying to protect it from hostile powers, if that agency still believes it is classified, if it remains secret, then a jury is likely to find that it’s NDI.

Did the defendant have reason to believe the information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation?

Trump is such a psychopath that the answer to this might normally be in question. After all, he routinely treated top secret intelligence like it was toilet paper or party favors for visiting Russians.

Except DOJ went to Trump’s residence in June and told him this information could harm the US. Then they wrote him a letter, saying that it could harm the US and could he please put a padlock on the basement room that had, up until that point, been accessible to all the suspected foreign assets who’ve paid the price of admission to Mar-a-Lago.

Did the defendant retain the above material and fail to deliver it to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it?

Yes! The Archives asked and asked and asked. And then DOJ went to his home and asked again!

Did he keep this document willfully?

Yup. Again, DOJ asked and asked and asked. Trump exhibited awareness the Archives were asking. He stopped in to say “hi!” when Jay Brat, the head of DOJ’s espionage section, came to visit. And he still hoarded the document.

This may be why Trump claims that nothing was in the hotel safe in his bridal suite, by the way. Keeping these documents at Mar-a-Lago was willful by itself. But keeping such documents in his safe would be proof that he, personally, was hoarding it.

If the FBI really did scoop up highly sensitive documents when they were at Mar-a-Lago the other day, then there may be relatively few steps left to charging him — aside from cataloging the 12 new boxes of stolen documents. DOJ may only need permission from the agencies that own these documents to make the declassifications required to prosecute it.

By going to Mar-a-Lago and asking for these documents in person on June 3, DOJ made it very easy to prove that Trump had been asked, but refused, to give any classified documents found in Trump’s possession on Monday back.
User avatar
mister_coffee
Posts: 1388
Joined: Thu Jul 16, 2020 7:35 pm
Location: Winthrop, WA
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by mister_coffee »

This is one way to separate out the truly dangerous loons and put them somewhere they can't harm themselves or others.
:arrow: David Bonn :idea:
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

It is frightening, but if the crowd of 2 dozen sympathizers that showed up in front of Mar a Lago is any indication of just how few actually are willing to buy into Trump's cries of victimhood and support him, we'll be ok.

Trump himself obliterated the Mar a Lago sympathy card when just this morning he appeared for the deposition in NY and pleaded the 5th, which in his own words, is something only mobsters do.
realoldtimer
Posts: 115
Joined: Sat Aug 08, 2020 9:00 am

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by realoldtimer »

The Republican response to the Mar-a-Lago raid should scare you

https://www.vox.com/2022/8/9/23298080/m ... ans-regime

AND

From Dumb to Terrifying, Here Are Some Unhinged Responses to the FBI Raid on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/20 ... responses/
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

This piece blows up the talking point that as a president Trump had the right to declassify any of the docs he stole from the WH

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-declassified/
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

Tuesday, the MAGA crowd hit Mar a Lago in support of Trump...all 2 dozen of them


By David Neiwert — August 10, 2022
America’s right-wing extremists have been hankering for a civil war for a long time now, and in particular have been eager to start using their guns in defense of Donald Trump ever since he came onto the political scene. They tried to start a civil war on Trump’s behalf after he lost on Jan. 6, 2021.

So to no one’s great surprise, they’re currently flooding social media and right-wing media bandwidth with vows to begin a civil war on Trump’s behalf after the FBI executed a search warrant at the ex-president’s Florida waterfront estate, Mar-a-Lago, and seized evidence in a yet-unspecified investigation. The rhetoric is mostly a mixture of over-the-top hysteria and dark threats, and it’s being wielded by everyone from congressional Republicans to anonymous militiamen.

Back when Trump was facing his first impeachment, he tweeted out a hint that the proceedings might unleash a civil war—which did unleash a deluge of militiamen and Trump supporters vowing to do exactly that. The sentiments they voiced then were remarkably similar to the threats of violence directly preceding the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Right after news of the Mar-a-Lago search broke, mentions of “civil war” on Twitter suddenly spiked, as Donie O’Sullivan reported.

The most prominent elected Republican to weigh in on the matter was Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose tweets became increasingly militant as the day progressed. They started out in typically unhinged fashion:

The FBI is raiding President Trump’s home in Maralago!

This is the rogue behavior of communist countries, NOT the United States of America!!!

These are the type of things that happen in countries during civil war.

The political persecution MUST STOP!!!


Later in the day, Greene’s tone became threatening: “What is happening will NOT be tolerated!!!” she wrote. “We are coming.”

A Florida Republican legislator running for Congress, Anthony Sabatini, wants the Florida state government to get involved and protect Trump from the evil federal government:

It’s time for us in the Florida Legislature to call an emergency legislative session & amend our laws regarding federal agencies

Sever all ties with DOJ immediately

Any FBI agent conducting law enforcement functions outside the purview of our State should be arrested upon sight.

Right-wing activist Laura Loomer, who is also running for Congress in Florida, was even more incendiary:

Time to take the gloves off. It’s been time. If you’re a freedom loving American, you must remove the words decorum and civility from your vocabulary. This is a WAR!

And it’s time to obliterate these communists. Tonight they attacked President Trump. If you sit on the sidelines and refuse to act, they will attack you and your family next.

What will you choose? Will you be a fighter? Or will you be a victim of the Deep State?

Arizona’s far-right Republican nominee for the governor’s seat, Kari Lake, posted a statement warning of the nation’s imminent demise:

This is one of the darkest days in American history: the day our Government, originally created by the people, turned against us. This illegitimate, corrupt Regime hates America and has weaponized the entirety of the Federal Government to take down President Donald Trump.

Our Government is rotten to the core. These Tyrants will stop at nothing to silence the Patriots who are working hard to save America. This is an incredibly horrendous abuse of power. If we accept it, America is dead.

We will not accept it. The 10th Amendment can and will save our Republic and the road to stripping the Feds of power travels right through Arizona.

We must fire the Federal Government. As Governor, I will fight these Tyrants with every fiber of my being. America—dark days lie ahead for us. May God protect us and save our Country.

Trump-loving right-wing pundits were similarly running around with their hair on fire, urging their audiences to prepare for war—and not just the metaphorical kind.

Jesse Kelly—the right-wing radio talk-show host who believes fascism is an inevitability for the American right, and is good with that—gave a shout-out to the so-called “constitutional sheriffs” who have threatened to get involved in the nation’s election apparatus in defense of Trump. “Do you have a county sheriff who will stand between you and a federal agent trying to violate your rights? If you don’t, you better get one. Or better yet, BECOME one,” Kelly tweeted.

He later tweeted out a quote with threatening implications: “Do not quote laws to men with swords.’ -Pompey Magnus,” Kelly tweeted.

Far-right pundit Candace Owens had a regular meltdown on Twitter:

The FBI must be legally and formally dissolved.

What happened to President Trump is positively stunning and a mark of unchecked government power.

I no longer recognize the country I live in. Left or right, we must all come together to fight this evil.

Meanwhile, longtime Fox News host Monica Crowley decided it was time to throw down the gauntlet: “This is it,” she tweeted. “This is the hill to die on.”

White nationalist pundit Jack Posobiec, who now hosts a daily show for the right-wing campus organization Turning Point USA, posted a series of tweets that essentially urged his audience to gird their loins for a real shooting war:

Are you ready.

The federal security state has declared war on Donald J Trump and his supporters.

The country you grew up in no longer exists.

We are living through the times our forefathers warned of.

Preemptive coup.

Welcome to the end game.

Longtime conspiracy theorist Steven Crowder’s unhinged tweet was shorter and more succinct: “Tomorrow is war,” he wrote. “Sleep well.”

The ominous suggestions that the base become engaged in violence could be heard on Fox News as well thanks to host Jesse Waters, who told his guest, Dan Bongino:

I think there is going to be some more action you are going to see out on the streets from the base after they see this break tonight... They've had it with what this corrupt government and what the FBI has done.

Another Fox News host, Mark Levin, claimed that investigating Trump was an attack on the nation itself:

This is the worst attack on this republic in modern history. Period. And it’s not just an attack on Donald Trump. It’s an attack on everybody who supports him. It’s an attack on anybody who dares to raise serious questions about Washington, D.C., and the establishment in both parties. I haven’t heard a damn thing from the Republican leadership in the Senate! Have you? Not one of those guys has put out a statement. Because they’re weak. That’s why.

Onetime Trump aide Sebastian Gorka tweeted: “This is the real insurrection.”

On Trump’s social media site Truth Social, radio host Wayne Root, Trump’s longtime fan and supporter, wrote: “This is now officially Nazi Germany Gestapo meets Soviet Union KGB.”

Trumpist pundit Carmine Sabia also penned a series of increasingly unhinged tweets to his 80,000-plus followers:

It is time for a #NationalDivorce before there is a Civil War. We cannot be a part of the same nation anymore.

And if I haven’t been direct enough let me say it again. If you are not for Donald Trump you are my enemy. I did not believe that four hours ago. But I believe it now. This was a gigantic fucking mistake Democrats.

This is war. Pick a side. There is no gray area.

The America that you knew and loved as a kid is gone. It’s gone and it’s never coming back.

These same sentiments could be found throughout right-wing social media, being voiced by ordinary randos and trolls at large and often at high volume.

“The Dems are starting a civil war.”
“Is this the first shot of a civil war? Is this the tyranny mentioned in the 2nd Amendment? The Founding Fathers would have started shooting a long time ago!”
“It’s time for a civil war. The deep state has proven they are real, they are corrupt, they are dictators.”
“Civil war! Pick up arms people!”
“The fbi just declared war on the republic. Treat them accordingly.”
“A civil war is coming after what the DOJ did today.”
“August 8, 2022 will be remembered forever. The start of Civil War II.”
“Our government is pushing for a civil war. Americans are only going to take so much.”
“I already bought my ammo”
“Civil War 2.0 just kicked off.”
“Let’s do the war.”
“One step closer to a kinetic civil war.”
“Lock and load”
“Let history show that Biden and his DOJ drew first blood with this raid on Mar-a-Lago.”
“FBI is headed by Jews. I warned you about these demons.”
“We’re at war.”
“It’s going to be wonderful to see FBI agents get killed in the future!”
“Prior to the attack on the Capitol on January 6th, we saw unprecedented plans online to conduct real-world violence,” observed Advance Democracy president Daniel J. Jones, a former Senate Intelligence Committee staff member, in a statement to NBC News. "The online outrage was based on false allegations of voter fraud and bizarre theories of coordinated government corruption. The raid by the FBI has provoked similar violent rhetoric online—including from at least one individual charged in relation to the insurrection on January 6th.”

Jones added: “The promotion of broad government conspiracy theories by political leaders, elected officials, and political entertainers continues to undermine our democracy—and will likely lead to additional political violence.”

Republished with permission from Daily Kos.
just-jim
Posts: 614
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2022 8:24 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by just-jim »

Rideback wrote: Tue Aug 09, 2022 10:16 am It is fun to watch how the Right is struggling to push back on this
Yes, it is.
Suddenly the party of ‘law ‘n order’, ‘back the blue’, ‘Hillary’s emails - lock her up’, ‘close the border’, etc etc, NOW wants to defund the FBI.

Even in light of legally obtained search warrant…sought by a tRump appointed FBI Director and likely approved by a tRump appointed judge. Can you say Schizophrenic party? They are so mad, they are biting their own arms like a confused and rabid dog.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... 4-election
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

It is fun to watch how the Right is struggling to push back on this.
https://balloon-juice.com/2022/08/09/more-trouble/
Rideback
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri Nov 12, 2021 5:53 am
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by Rideback »

by Joyce Vance

'Tonight, on the 48th anniversary of Richard Nixon’s resignation from the presidency, the FBI executed a search warrant at Trump’s residence, Mar-a-Lago. Not a raid. No crashing in of doors or destruction of property. This is a judicially authorized proceeding, in which a federal judge independently reviews an FBI agent’s sworn affidavit and must conclude they agree that there is probable cause for the search.

Probable cause is more than just suspicion, it means a reasonable person reviewing the evidence would conclude a crime has been committed and there is good reason to believe evidence or fruits of it will be recovered from the place to be searched. Trump says the FBI searched his private safe. That, in and of itself, tells us a lot about who the likely target of this investigation is.

Of course, we don’t know the specifics, because DOJ doesn’t conduct its investigations in public. But there is plenty of reporting that suggests this is about classified documents Trump took with him when he left the White House. You’ll recall that back in February, we learned classified information was found in 15 boxes of records in Trump’s possession. The National Archives wanted its records back. They got them by negotiating with Trump.

Please avoid getting carried away. While people are sometimes prosecuted under this statute in egregious cases, for instance when General Petraeus shared classified information with a paramour who was writing a book (and even then, the charge was a misdemeanor), in many cases, the government just wants its documents back. We don’t know what the circumstances are here, and shouldn’t leap to conclusions. Investigations into missing classified documents focus on potential crimes, but equally important, they assess whether there has been damage to national security. That last bit makes me quite curious about the nature of the documents DOJ seized.

I’ve seen search warrants used in at least three situations:

Early in a case to acquire evidence, not always from the target/subject of the investigation, but also from others who wouldn’t give it to me voluntarily

At the end of an investigation, to get the last bit of evidence from a target, before indicting (or as the last step before concluding there wasn’t sufficient evidence to indict)

To further an assessment of damage to national security following a spill of classified information and determine whether a crime was committed

You can see a blank search warrant at this link. The judge or magistrate judge fills it out if they agree the agent has provided probable cause. The warrant authorizes the search, stating with specificity the location to be searched and items to be searched for. The judge may permit a nighttime search upon a showing of good cause (that doesn’t seem to have been the case here). Typically, the owner of premises being searched is advised of the search and items seized. Some searches are conducted in secret, with delayed notice of 30 days or more where justified to the person being searched. Again, not the case here.

The second page of the linked document is what’s commonly called a “return of service” — the agent fills out an inventory of items taken in the search and fills in details like the time of the search and returns it to the court to be included in the official record. Trump has the warrant and the inventory in his possession and could release them, although that seems unlikely; they’re probably highly incriminating. These filings are almost certainly sealed, at least for now, in court files, and we won’t see them from that direction.

So why the search warrant? Apparently the information in the FBI’s possession convinced the Attorney General, who would have final sign off at DOJ, that there wasn’t going to be any more voluntary turnover like the boxes of documents Trump returned in February. And that a subpoena, commanding delivery of records to a grand jury, wouldn’t be honored. Search warrants are a last resort for obtaining evidence, and can also be used in cases where there are concerns about destruction of evidence. Lots of room for speculation here at the moment.

Of course, we don’t know the specifics, because DOJ doesn’t conduct its investigations in public. But there is plenty of reporting that suggests this is about classified documents Trump took with him when he left the White House. You’ll recall that back in February, we learned classified information was found in 15 boxes of records in Trump’s possession. The National Archives wanted its records back. They got them by negotiating with Trump.

But the evidence in search warrants has to be “fresh.” That means it has to be recent, not months old. You can be certain that in this case, that was top of mind for people at the FBI and DOJ who reviewed the search warrant affidavit and for the judge who evaluated it. This search warrant wasn’t based on stale, months old evidence documents were in Trump’s safe. The evidence was recent and compelling.

Some of this suggests this could end up being the type of situation where prosecution is on the table. But I’m still not ready to embrace that conclusion. The National Archives have a reputation for being fiercely protective of public records and insistent on getting back ones that have strayed. The bottom line is, we’re not going to know if this case is headed towards indictment for a while. For what it’s worth, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this search warrant was executed 91 days before the midterm elections. DOJ goes silent on investigations with a political nexus in the run up to the election, and while some offices run on a 60 day clock, 90 feels right here. Conducting the search today gives DOJ plenty of time to process whatever evidence it now has in its possession.

We all know Merrick Garland is a by-the-book kind of guy. There have been lots of complaints about his restraint, and until recently, his inaction. Garland has repeatedly committed to following the facts and the law. Today, they led him to Mar-a-Lago. It was a good day for the rule of law.
User avatar
pasayten
Posts: 2444
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 8:03 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by pasayten »

Trump disqualified from holding office? Clinton-linked lawyer points to US Code after FBI raid
Daniel Chaitin - Yesterday 5:58 PM

With news of the FBI raiding Mar-a-Lago, buzz quickly bubbled up Monday evening about whether former President Donald Trump could be disqualified from office again.

The FBI search of the Florida resort was related to Trump's handling of presidential records, including classified documents, after leaving office, sources told CNN.

Such reporting had Marc Elias, the top lawyer for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign who has drawn scrutiny for his role in pushing Trump-Russia collusion claims, pointing to U.S. Code Title 18, Section 2071. "The media is missing the really, really big reason why the raid today is a potential blockbuster in American politics," Elias said in a tweet.

The passage that says anyone "having the custody of any such record, proceeding, map, book, document, paper, or other thing, willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, falsifies, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both; and shall forfeit his office and be disqualified from holding any office under the United States," was the one he highlighted.

Allies of Trump expressed suspicions that the raid was part of a political move meant to ward off another presidential run — something Trump has strongly hinted he will partake in for 2024. Steve Bannon, a former White House aide who was pardoned by Trump, noted Elias's tweet during a call on Fox News.

"They are absolutely petrified Trump is going to announce in a couple of weeks, win the Republican nomination, win the White House," Bannon said.

The National Archives said presidential records in 15 boxes obtained from Mar-a-Lago earlier this year were marked as classified national security information.

In announcing the FBI's raid of his resort, Trump said: "After working and cooperating with the relevant Government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate. It is prosecutorial misconduct, the weaponization of the Justice System, and an attack by Radical Left Democrats who desperately don’t want me to run for President in 2024.”
pasayten
Ray Peterson
User avatar
pasayten
Posts: 2444
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 8:03 pm
Contact:

Re: FBI Raid on Mar-A-Lago

Post by pasayten »

dorankj wrote: Mon Aug 08, 2022 9:13 pm You have no idea what a ‘democracy’ is! Posting stupid propaganda will never make it real.
Ken... I think just-jim's political cartoon pretty much sums the real situation up... and portrays your "reality"...

and I am still waiting for your dissertation on...
dorankj wrote: Sat Jul 30, 2022 10:11 pm COVID was used to remove a President and to purposely change the economy! Big difference.
t2.jpeg
pasayten
Ray Peterson
Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests