AusGeoff wrote on Aug 12^th, 2022 at 12:46pm:



We haven't heard any accusation yet that Trump was deliberately trying to hide documents. Perhaps if they had simply asked him in private to review what documents he had in his possession, he probably would have fully co-operated and handed over any the FBI wanted - ending the matter

It's all a political witch hunt, they could have asked to see any documents after he left office, but they've waited till the Mid-Terms are close, and hoping to ruin his chances in 2024

Bias_2012 wrote on Aug 12^th, 2022 at 12:57pm:



i don't think being inbred qualifies as making someone 'more american'

Bias_2012 wrote on Aug 12^th, 2022 at 1:04pm:


Exactly. Maybe Mr Trump was just looking after them for safe keeping. The National Archives is notorious for tearing up documents and flushing them down the loo, no?

Much safer to keep them in a room by the pool at Mar a Lago. At least the Deep State won't get their dirty hands on them there, no?

WITCH HUNT!!!

Karnal wrote on Aug 12^th, 2022 at 1:27pm:


White flag accepted

Bias_2012 wrote on Aug 12^th, 2022 at 1:04pm:


FMD, this has been ongoing since Trump got kicked out of the white house in 2020.

January 2022
It was later revealed that in mid-January, the National Archives had succeeded in retrieving 15 boxes of materials taken from the White House at the end of Mr. Trump’s term and stored at Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump’s private club and residence in Palm Beach, Fla. The agency said it had negotiated with Mr. Trump’s lawyers throughout 2021 to have the materials returned.

February 2022
Sometime after receiving the boxes, the National Archives discovered what appeared to be classified information within the documents Mr. Trump had held onto and flagged the incident to the Justice Department for guidance. The agency publicly confirmed on Feb. 18 that it had found documents marked as containing “classified national security information” among the boxes.

May 2022
In early May, the Justice Department issued a subpoena to the National Archives to obtain the classified documents found within the boxes recovered from Mar-a-Lago. Authorities also requested interviews with several White House officials present in the final days before Mr. Trump left the White House. These steps appeared to confirm that the Justice Department had begun a grand jury investigation into whether Mr. Trump had mishandled the sensitive documents, and that its investigative efforts were picking up steam.

At some point in the spring, a small group of federal agents, including at least one involved in counterintelligence, also made an unusual visit to Mar-a-Lago to seek out more information about classified documents that might have been stored there. Mr. Trump and at least one of his lawyers were said to have been present for part of the meeting. It was not immediately clear when the visit took place.

So not a political witch hunt as you suggest. Just Trump hiding more documents, documents that he has no right to have in his possession.

Bias_2012 wrote on Aug 12^th, 2022 at 1:04pm:


Yes, we've heard more than mere "accusations" of Trump illicitly removing documents
and concealing them at Mar-a-Lago.

The Justice Department inquiry is about documents that Trump removed from the
White House as his term was ending in January 2021. Earlier this year, officials from
the National Archives and Records Administration, known as NARA, recovered fifteen
boxes of classified presidential documents from Mar-a-Lago.  [CNN Politics, 12 August]

So... what does the PRA (Presidential Records Act) say?

It established that presidential records belong to the US and that the president must
transfer control of them [the documents] to the National Archives and Records
Administration after leaving office. Furthermore, while in office, the president may
only dispose of records after an archivist determines they “no longer have administrative,
historical, informational, or evidentiary value.”

Though the PRA by itself doesn’t specify any penalties, violations could trigger several
Federal statutes that make it a felony to mishandle government property. These potentially
include laws barring injury to US property, improper disposal of records belonging to the US,
unauthorized removal or retention of classified materials and removal or destruction of any
record deposited with a US office or official. Obstruction of justice statutes could also apply
if the documents removed or destroyed were relevant to a criminal, civil or Congressional
investigation. Convictions for injuring US property or improperly disposing of records can
carry sentences of up to 10 years in prison.

Trump is now.....