The FBI raid on former President Donald Trump’s home raises many questions. Why did Trump take large amounts of top-secret documents with him when he left the White House? And what would he use them for?
This is a comment. The comment reflects the author’s positionIt’s worth remembering that in 2016, Donald Trump made a big deal out of Hillary Clinton’s careless use of email. After defeating the election four years later, Trump took boxes of sensitive documents, some of which he described as top-secret, to his property in Mar-a-Lago.
When this is revealed, the Trumps, as usual, play the victim. He did nothing wrong. He claims to have been abused and subjected to a witch hunt.
Explanations spread in all directions. Trump says he has no classified documents at home.
If it still has it, it is suggested that it be transplanted. Moreover, the documents, which do not exist, were classified by himself. In any case, Barack Obama did exactly the same thing when he stepped down as president, it is alleged. But the US National Archives rejects that.
The National Archives is responsible for taking care of these public documents, and for more than a year they have tried to persuade Trump to voluntarily return everything he took with him.
As you know, Trump is not like other presidents. And not like other previous presidents either. After negotiations, Trump finally handed over 15 boxes of documents earlier this year. In June, the FBI was in Florida and collected additional material.
In this regard, one of Trump’s lawyers reportedly signed a statement that all items with a security designation should be returned. It turns out that this is not the case.
When the FBI searched Trump’s property earlier in August, they found eleven sets of documents that were classified as top secret. In all, the FBI took 20 boxes, including notes and artifacts.
These are documents that should not go astray. It should not be kept in private property where a large number of people come and go. Top secret documents should only be kept in some well-guarded public building, and under very strict control.
As a former president, Trump also cannot, at his discretion, reduce secret memos.
A judge granted the Ministry of Justice’s request to search Mar-a-Lago. The order is based on the suspicion that Trump broke the law by concealing, withholding or destroying public documents.
If he is prosecuted and convicted at this point, the sentence is three years in prison.
More seriously, the investigation also includes potential violations of the Federal Espionage Act. Then the penalty is 10 years in prison.
The most serious problem for Trump is that the FBI found documents marked as top-secret in Mar-a-Lago.
The law was passed during World War I, when Woodrow Wilson was president, to prevent the leakage of information related to national security.
Trump now says the authorities could have gotten all the documents they wanted, if only they had asked. The National Archives has been doing this for more than a year.
But the question remains as to what purpose Trump will use the classified documents for.
It becomes very important for investigators to find motive and purpose. This may determine whether or not charges are brought.
As Trump presents the case, the investigation is only politically motivated. President Joe Biden is believed to be putting political pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland.
Trump may have forgotten how he put so much pressure on Attorney General William Barr in a desperate attempt to change the outcome of the 2020 election.
No former president has had his home searched by federal agents. No president has been impeached twice before Trump. No previous president has sparked as many investigations as Trump.
In New York, his business activities are being investigated, while several bodies are investigating his attempt to block approval of Joe Biden’s election victory.
Most hardline Trump supporters see this as evidence that the left, the deep state, and the media are after him. Republican politicians are following suit.
Representative Elise Stefanik of New York believes the FBI has committed abuse of power at the highest levels. Marjorie Tyler Green of Georgia supports that Congress should “defund” the FBI, that is, cut funding to the Federal Police.
Harriet Hageman, who on Wednesday night defeated the main Republican critic of Trump, Liz Cheney, in the Wyoming primary, called the Trump investigation “political persecution.”
The election results show that the investigations against Trump are not weakening him. It strengthens his position among Republican voters.
The Republican Party was known as the Law and Order Party. This is certainly no longer the case.
In Trump’s party, many voters have lost faith in both the electoral system and democratic institutions.
On social media, on the extremist outer wing, calls for armed rebellion and even civil war abound. This has increased after the raid in Mar-a-Lago.
Last week, an armed man stormed barriers to Congress and over the weekend, a person with a firearm attempted to enter the FBI office in Cincinnati.
The Ministry of Security notified the police and the country’s authorities of a higher level of threat and an increased risk of violence.
Donald Trump has largely succeeded in his campaign against Republican politicians who dared speak out against him. Trump’s party is expected to win control of one or both houses in the midterm congressional elections this fall.
Trump is acting as if he is above the law and no investigation can stop him.
Trump will likely announce soon that he is running for president in 2024.
The only thing we can say for sure is that he will not admit defeat, if he loses again. Regardless, Trump followers will blindly believe him. The United States saw what this could lead to.
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