UPDATE #2: Via POLITICO, Republicans are starting to feel the hangover from their “defend Trump” bender earlier this week:
As new information emerged about the circumstances behind the FBI search, the contrast grew starker between Republicans advancing a knee-jerk defense of the former president and those who are simply calling for additional disclosures from DOJ.
Among the senior Republicans acknowledging that it’s possible the presence of highly classified information at Mar-a-Lago would be a genuine national security concern was Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio, the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee…
…Turner was also one of several Republicans who’d lambasted DOJ earlier this week to reorient his criticism from the decision to search Mar-a-Lago to the process the department used: “There were many other options available to them … besides raiding Mar-a-Lago and spending nine hours there.”
Some Republicans are leaving open the possibility that Trump acted inappropriately. In an interview, Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah), an Intelligence Committee member, said it was important for the panel to glean additional information and acknowledged that mishandling of sensitive classified information would be a serious violation.
—–
UPDATE: As Max Boot writes for The Washington Post:
—–
As The Los Angeles Times reports, we’re starting to learn just how bad things are looking for former President Donald Trump:
FBI agents removed 11 sets of classified documents — including some marked top secret and meant to be available only in special government facilities — from former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Monday.
The itemized list of items taken from the property, which was released Friday at the Department of Justice’s request along with the accompanying warrant, includes one set of documents marked as “Various classified/TS/SCI documents,” which is an abbreviation that refers to top-secret/sensitive compartmented information. In addition,agents recovered four sets of top secret documents, three sets of secret documents and three sets of confidential documents, according to the newly public information.
The list, released by U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart Friday with the text of the warrant, does not include details on the subject matter of the documents.
According to the search warrant, the alleged crimes under investigation are violations of the Espionage Act, which outlaws the unauthorized retention of national security information that could harm the United States or aid a foreign adversary; a federal law that makes it a crime to destroy or conceal a document in order to obstruct a government investigation; and another statute associated with unlawful removal of government materials. [Pols emphasis]
Copies of the unsealed documents are now floating around online:
Here’s the unsealed trump docs. pic.twitter.com/ZfJL3xyRiI
— Seamus Hughes (@SeamusHughes) August 12, 2022
Here’s more from The Associated Press on some of the items uncovered at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence:
The warrant details that federal agents were investigating potential violations of three different federal laws, including one that governs gathering, transmitting or losing defense information under the Espionage Act. The other statutes address the concealment, mutilation or removal of records and the destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations.
The property receipt also showed federal agents collected other potential presidential records, including the order pardoning Trump ally Roger Stone, a “leatherbound box of documents,” and information about the “President of France.” A binder of photos, a handwritten note, “miscellaneous secret documents” and “miscellaneous confidential documents” were also seized in the search.
Trump’s attorney, Christina Bobb, who was present at Mar-a-Lago when the agents conducted the search, signed both property receipts — one that was two pages long and another that is a single page. [Pols emphasis]
Among Trump’s many claims/excuses related to the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago on Monday were that his attorneys were not allowed to be present at the time of the search; the fact that one of his attorneys SIGNED THE PROPERTY RECEIPTS makes this argument considerably less useful.
We’ll continue to update this post as more information becomes available.
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Hope Donald visits Colorado soon, as a permanent resident of ADX Florence (Supermax)
Nah. He's not dangerous or violent. If anywhere, he'll be sent to Terre Haute. That's where white-collar criminals go.
Espionage prisoners often get special consideration for "upgraded" prison facilities, so Trump could get a Colorado residence for a bit.
Interesting. Although he might be in danger there. That place holds the some scary people.
LOCK HIM UP.
Your message is "get more smarter"!
And lock him up? with all the treasonous things biden and his criminal cartel has committed???? what a back assward and anti-American website!
You all make me sick!
Enjoy your illness!
In fairness to us, you were quite a way down that path before you ever found us, cupcake.
We do?
Well, that is gratifying.
Doesn't violation of the Espionage Act carry a potential death penalty?
I asked Julius Rosenberg that very same question, LB. I haven't heard back.
Man, that is really gonna hit Trump where it hurts — his pocketbook.
Anyone check the members and guest logs at Mar-a-lago? The only criteria for entry and access to Trump is money.
Bet there are a few frequent guests with Russian names that paid really good money for a peek into Trump's basement.
TRUMP: "Mr. Badinoff, please feel free to go down into my wine cellar and examine the vintages there. Please do offer me what you think is a fair price for any of them."
BADINOFF: "Da." [later] "One MILLION rubles for the fine 2019 French."
You are all mentally ill people, who need immediate attention!
There are only a handful of men who has been crucified by you criminal evil people and has survived! Trump is one of them! When are you going to understand that he has done nothing wrong????
If your looking for wrong doing, you need to look in the mirror!
Trump has done nothing wrong? Really?
We don't know about his current problems, as we do not have even indictments, let alone trials and verdicts. I agree that he's innocent until proven guilty on criminal matters.
But "nothing wrong" might be a bit of a stretch: USA TODAY in 2016 had a database of legal matters involving Trump. A summary, developed within a Wikipedia article, says "In the 1,300 cases where the record establishes the outcome, Trump settled 175 times, lost 38, won 450, and had another 137 cases end with some other outcome." Among the settlements: Trump paid $25 million in the Trump University case, alone.
Another final decision was rendered about the Trump Foundation: "The Trump Foundation was in fact found to have committed fraud and misappropriated funds, and was ordered to be shut down." That settlement included "Mr. Trump admits to personally misusing funds at the Trump Foundation, and agrees to restrictions on future charitable service and ongoing reporting to the Office of the Attorney General in the event he creates a new charity."
There are a host of other "wrongs" by Donald Trump.
I look in the mirror and I see someone willing to pull the lever at your hanging…keep it up ivan….
Trump's wallet is in far more danger from the NY AG's office. Since he plead the 5th, he's got additional chances of losing the farm if a jury finds he fiddled with the numbers. Literally; NY State has an organizational "death penalty", and Trump is already a two-time loser under those rules. (Trump U and the Trump charity) The state could ask for the dissolution of Trump Org; that is Trump Tower, his golf courses, and the Seven Springs property in Westchester.
First NY hit to Trump is likely to be the Weisselberg & Trump Organization trial in NYC. Jury selection is now set for October 24.
Isn’t the RNC still on the hook for his legal bills? When will he hit the high-water mark with Ronna
McDanielsRomney?They're on the hook for his legal bills in perpetuity.
You are so full of shit, I cannot believe you can even walk!
"We" may seem full of shit to you because we are not shitting bricks non-stop…unlike you and Fat Donnie from Queens.
Not after he announces for 2024. At least someone in charge at the RNC has some sense.
RNC pays some. Trump campaign pays some. Trump legal defense fund pays some. Trump Organization pays some.
and it is POSSIBLE that Trump personally pays some.
The RNC should really enjoy paying this guy, Drew Findling, the “billion dollar lawyer” who is also vehemently pro-choice. Findling has offered to defend any woman charged for the “crime” of abortion in Georgia.
Attorney-client relations should be interesting, too:
Wait, what?
Donnie's nutty
supporterscult members will still support his traitorous ass till the very end. These screwballs will claim it is a "deep state" plot to smear the impeccable reputation of trump.Latest parlor game: Who ratted out Trump?
My money is definitely on Melania. After seeing where they buried Ivana she was like “Fuck all sheet with Donald. I not like bury on golf course, hole number 3. I call FBI.” (h/t some guy on Twitter)
You are so FU your looking in the wrong direction fool!
*you're
I am very worried about the FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago. If they can execute a search warrant on Donald Trump for this, then they can do the same to any of us if we take nuclear secrets home and store them in the basement.
</sarcasm>