I am totally confused, can someone help me out? The Feds found and recovered

[dugog55]

fifteen boxes of White House records/materials at Mar-A-Lago that Trump apparently transferred there. They did not belong to him so the "transfer" has to be considered stealing. Some of the materials were labeled "classified". Just removing classified materials from the White House is a felony. Transporting them to your residence can only be considered stealing. Just exactly how is Trump not under arrest for these actions?

Seriously, people are arrested constantly for shoplifting clothes or walking out of a convenience store with a bag of chips and a can of pop. How are Trumps actions not more serious, and there is little to nothing said in the news or papers about it. And again, how the hell has he not been arrested for this?

It is appalling how the rich and famous tromp all over laws and constantly get away with it.

[czarjak]

1. "When you're famous, they let you"?

[chowder66]

2. The FBI is going investigate

FBI Preparing to Investigate How Classified Material Went to Trump's Home

https://news.yahoo.com/fbi-preparing-investigate-classified-material-114106736.html

[Rebl2]

19. I don't

trust them to do anything

[KPN]

22. Didn't the National Archives make referral requesting an

investigation on this months ago? And FBI is just now planning to investigate? WTF?

[chowder66]

25. Yes. Here is a more in depth article

The FBI is investigating how classified White House materials ended up at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home, according to the Washington Post and New York Times.

The Justice Department has "begun taking steps" to investigate Trump's removal of presidential records, including classified documents that were labeled "top secret," according to the Post. The FBI, which is leading the effort, is in the "preliminary stages" of the probe, according to the Times.

The National Archives said in February that it had reached out to the Justice Department after discovering "classified national security information" in 15 boxes with White House documents, mementos and gifts that had been improperly taken to Mar-a-Lago. The DOJ instructed the National Archives not to share details about the materials with the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating the matter as well, suggesting that a "criminal investigation might be underway," according to the Times.

https://www.salon.com/2022/04/08/fbi-probes-secret-docs-at-mar-a-lago--suggesting-a-criminal-investigation-is-already-underway/

[sprinkleeninow]

71. "...begun taking steps...."

teeny tiny little bitsy ones

[Alexander Of Assyria]

103. Every flood begins with a trickle...investigation first, charges later...always worked that way...

real world criminal law is not Twitter.

[AllyCat]

31. That's right. They are "preparing".

They need time to prepare.

[William Gustafson]

85. Prepare for Ludicrous speed.....

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=space+balls...+%22prepare+to+go+to+warp+speed%22&docid=608025356309499695&mid=FA38A7222CF5A300E759FA38A7222CF5A300E759&view=detail&FORM=VIRE&msclkid=8889c300b93f11ec980a99dcbdceab49

[onethatcares]

34. I'll save them a bunch of money

Last edited Mon Apr 11, 2022, 07:44 AM - Edit history (1)

The boxes were loaded in a truck by one of his minions. Driven on I-95 to the lardass's house and unloaded waiting shipment to some place that rhymes with "pRussia".

The FBI can send me a big fat check for that.

[Bettie]

38. My problem is that they were "going to investigate" Kavenaugh too

and they ignored all of that.

The last sentence in the OP says it all.

[DENVERPOPS]

44. Go back even further

and the head of the FBI was going to investigate the multiple reports from Airline Pilots Schools in Arizona that had many mid-eastern students that were focusing on flying airliners, not the take offs and landings. Louis Freh?, head of the FBI led no such investigation, then retired shortly thereafter.......This fit in perfectly with the previous years PNAC paper written as a dream list of what the Republicans wanted in the future government of America........

[Bettie]

51. Yeah.

Ultimately 'we're going to investigate' tends to mean that they plan on not pursuing any action, but they can say that they investigated.

Not super trusting of Chris Wray.

[certainot]

73. a lot of it depends on how outraged a few hundred lying assholes on 1500 coordinated radio stations

Last edited Mon Apr 11, 2022, 10:47 AM - Edit history (1)

are, and what they've been told to get outraged about.

without them screaming about hillary's emails Comey would have shut up

if they were screaming about mara largo and trump's crimes trump would be in jail

unfortunately dems ignore that republican advantage and media follows that buzz because of it, thinking it's legit public outrage instead of flying out of those few hundred racist lying blowhards, scripted from rw and russian think tanks

[cachukis]

74. And they get paid for it.

[HootieMcBoob]

96. This is exact the reason

GOP has a massive media machine that they use to rile up their base and work the refs. The Dems just can’t match it. It’s a kind of asymmetric warfare that the Democrats do not do well.

[Bettie]

101. Yes. Ceding AM radio to the right wing

was a huge tactical blunder.

But, they were willing to lose a whole lot of money to get control of a portion of the country.

[getagrip_already]

99. You can trust him...

He will land that plane safely. He did it for tfg once, he can do it many times.

[mrsadm]

60. Investigating???

How in the world is an investigation needed? The boxes are in his house! I suppose he'll get away with it because he'll say he didn't request the boxes. Aargh!!!!!

[calimary]

75. That's my guess.

WTF do you need to “investigate”???

Just cue the fucking VIDEO!!!!!

There are THOUSANDS OF HOURS of video! MILES of column inches already written and published! Honestly, I don’t know what the Dems are afraid of!

It’s incredibly frustrating and INFURIATING that our team keeps on tiptoeing around trying not to offend anybody! Why should we care who they fucking “offend,” just so long as it isn’t one of our own! Especially when there are so many damn targets to choose from!

[treestar]

76. They have to establish

It was knowing I bet. With TFG it could be incompetence.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

104. Yes....the chaos of the WH exit many have been on purpose to make investigation harder.

I wish people would be less Outragged and more aware of how criminal law works…takes time…a few steps…frustrating not going at pace of social media…there justice is rendered instantly…doesn’t have to be fair at all!

[reACTIONary]

82. The records in question may be...

... copies of records that were turned over, or copies of them may have been turned over. They would have to establish whether that was the case, I would think.

Here is a good summary of the law and the issues:

https://www.lawfareblog.com/trumps-presidential-records-act-violations-short-and-long-term-solutions

[stopdiggin]

93. how dare you get in the middle of my outrage! -(nt)-

[reACTIONary]

94. +10 nt

[msfiddlestix]

102. you seem to have faith in Chris Wray's intentions

like he's demonstrated credibility and faith to a motto of justice for all or some such.

I'm trying hard to recall anything under his leadership that i can applaud him for with full throated ferver.

just can't recall a single thing, personally.

[reACTIONary]

112. Who is Chris Wray? And why should I care? I'm just pointing out...

... that finding a box of documents at Mar-a whatever doesn't mean that they were not also deposited with the national archive. And determining which, if any, have been, and which have not isn't going to be a snap. It's going to take time.

So, instead of being totally confused, be patient.

[lagomorph777]

88. After 3 months, they think they'll START?

WTF?

[Alexander Of Assyria]

105. Don't u derstand...think it's too late to investigate and charge, cause I do not.

Garland reads the news…the announcement of investigation was just that.

I for one, am utterly delighted cause this investigation is focused on a single target, TFG, single issue, theft, and likely won’t take long.

[ecstatic]

118. I was fully expecting to see the

sarcasm emoji. This is good news.

[pwb]

3. My guess?

Pukes let him run his business from the White House and the things taken may just be business records? Other Presidents have separated themselves from conflicts of interest trump likes to make conflicts. It is just an example of arrogance and privilege IMO.

[Tanuki]

12. No, some were marked "Top Secret," a classification that means disclosure

could pose "an exceptionally grave threat" to our national security.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/02/10/trump-records-classified/

"Some of the White House documents that Donald Trump improperly took to his Mar-a-Lago residence were clearly marked as classified, including documents at the “top secret” level, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The existence of clearly marked classified documents in the trove — which has not previously been reported — is likely to intensify the legal pressure that Trump or his staffers could face, and raises new questions about why the materials were taken out of the White House.
...

A "top secret” classification is applied to information where unauthorized disclosure “could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security,” according to the Archives’s Information Security Oversight Office."...(more)

[HighFired49]

52. NO reason is good enough

"and raises new questions about why the materials were taken out of the White House." It doesn't matter WHY! What possible reason is good enough, when the mere act is illegal? Arrest his no good, miserable ass today.

[llmart]

23. His personal business records would not be considered "classified".

These records are not his to keep.

[Captain Zero]

37. His personal business records shouldn't be in the WH!

Shouldn't even have been there because his businesses should have gone into a blind trust with a business management firm overseeing it until he left office !

Or his businesses should have been sold.

[happy feet]

92. This!

[njhoneybadger]

4. But those emails

[yardwork]

5. But Hillary's emails....

Infuriating, ain't it.

[KS Toronado]

14. Speaking of emails, did you see this one today?

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100216581379

[yardwork]

42. Just recced it!

[dem4decades]

6. He's above the law, nothing to see here, move along.

[bucolic_frolic]

7. Somebody owes him a ton of favors

or he knows enough to topple everything, or he knows someone powerful who knows everything

[Novara]

8. Some of it is SO classified they can't even describe what it is to the public.

Just exactly how is Trump not under arrest for these actions?

Could you EVEN imagine if you or I STOLE highly classified information?

[Duppers]

17. Zactly!

[doc03]

9. Instead of arresting the January 6th insurectiinists

they escorted them out of the Capitol. Had they been BLM
or even a bunch of Democrats they would still be sitting in jail waiting for a trial.

[JT45242]

11. Nope... shot dead before they got inside

Had it been BLM, they would have been mowed down with wave after wave of gun fire before they even got to the steps of the building.


Just like KKK Bundy and his group, had they been BIPOC, they would have been dead before they were arrested. There would not have been a weeks ling standoff.

Rich white guys are above the law. Because white supremacists have infiltrated all levels of law enforcement. The federalist society owns major players at the DOJ, FBI (see Comey and his shameful handling of Hillary that allowed TFG to be elected), and of course the judicial branch.

[doc03]

16. You are probably right. nt

[llashram]

21. every word, true

[llmart]

24. You nailed it on the head.

Don't ever think that the FBI is not loaded with their own type of crook. It's the kind that looks the other way when certain people commit crimes.

[uponit7771]

68. +1

[uponit7771]

67. +1, or napalmed on site

[NullTuples]

84. Jan 6th seditionists so far received a mean of 45 days in jail for attempting an overthrow

Black men regularly receive YEARS for minimal marijuana possession.

[doc03]

87. On January 6th I couldn't believe what I was seeing when they were just escorted out. Everyone

of them inside of the building should have been put in handcuffs as they came out the door. People receive more
punishment for shoplifting a pair of shoes in this country.

[NullTuples]

107. *Some* people receive more punishment. Some get a slap on the wrist.

The idea that our justice system is impartial has been dismantled and the results raised up for all to see. Biases were always there, but Republicans decided it was time to stop hiding them. Not to fix the problem but to celebrate it.

[Scrivener7]

10. Someone is going to tell you that they're waiting to charge him with something bigger.

But if you had done this AND something bigger, you would be prosecuted for both.

Someone is also going to tell you that these things are so complicated that nothing could possibly have been done about it before now.

Someone else is going to tell you that there was nothing much in those boxes so we should move on.

All of these responses are nonsense.

[Meowmee]

15. Yep

[sop]

30. You forgot those someones who are going to urge us to "have patience."

[Meowmee]

33. Yep. Patience

[area51]

72. +1 n/t

[aggiesal]

13. Not just classified, they were labeled TOP SECRET ...

https://www.npr.org/2022/02/11/1080049326/top-secret-documents-are-recovered-from-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence

And yes, he should be arrested or someone in his circle.

[lagomorph777]

89. I think I heard they were "above top secret" - meaning things known in very small circles.

Digraphs and beyond. Probably worth truckloads of Roubles.

[RANDYWILDMAN]

18. Crimes are what the little people commit, other make mistakes....

but we all really know this is a crime by dumbshit, but he commits so many that never call crap on him.

F-that guy and his family. I hope somebody high up lets out all the garbage he did, so some of the 70 mill who think he is God can realise he is really just a turd.

[Meowmee]

20. Probable answer

Powers that be are terrified to charge a former so called prez with any crime no matter how serious it may be, no matter how much of a criminal he obviously is and no matter how much of a threat he is to democracy.

Charging is just a start, it has to be successfully prosecuted etc. and then properly sentenced if convicted.

My guess is dump walks with no real accountability for all of his numerous crimes.

[llashram]

26. more than likely

with every passing day. My bet with my friend is charges and any potential indictments will slowly be swept under the Federalist rug until voila! Nothing here. Shit smeared on the walls of Congress? No biggie. That person is the mentality of the people who proved they were traitors on 1/6/21. Capitol police killed and injured? No biggie. Calling for Pelosi with a noose in hand? No biggie. Ivanka coming out of the WH with 640 million dollars she didn't walk in with? No biggie. Just the price of doing business with crooks and grifters. And on and on. No one of consequence will see a day behind bars. They have enough patsies so as to bleed off blame from themselves.

[llmart]

28. +1000

I don't ever want to hear that we are a "country of laws" or "no one is above the law" EVER AGAIN!

[DENVERPOPS]

46. Or hear the phrase:

Every Vote Counts...........

[llmart]

64. That too.

We need to stop telling ourselves these fairy tales.

[llashram]

111. ouch...

one last bastion, is under fire.

[llashram]

110. I know, it's getting there

with me too.

[Meowmee]

32. Yes sounds likely

The consequences of no real accountability will be severe

[llmart]

27. They would have no trouble charging a former prez if it were a Clinton or any other Democrat.

I agree with you that he'll walk with no accountability and so will his grifting loser kids.

[Meowmee]

29. Yes could be true if a dem

[Bettie]

39. But you can bet they'll do it if they

get the white house ever again.

They will charge and imprison a whole lot of people without a second thought.

[Meowmee]

65. They will try, that is a given imo

Will people let them get there again and do it, these are the questions.

[uponit7771]

70. Unnn, Spiro Agnew was charged arrested tried and put in jail for years

[Meowmee]

80. Yes but not Nixon or many others as I recall

He was not the president.

[Joinfortmill]

35. That's the question of the century.

[oldsoftie]

36. I'd bet .25 because they can't prove HE took them.

So they're not going to go down that road until they know who did.

[Shipwack]

100. To be honest, I don't really care if Trump took them...

The bigger issues are:

1) Were there only 15 boxes?

2) Was anything copied, taken out of the boxes, or copied/transmitted?

As I say downthread, the whole place should have been ransacked to try to attempt to answer these things. Once everything was secured, then we can take a step back and figure out who did what, and who knew.

Then again, that would require a backbone that seems to be missing from many of those in charge.

[oldsoftie]

106. Do you think they could have obtained a warrant to search EVERYTHING though?

Judges can be pretty specific about it

[Shipwack]

108. I'm not a criminal law experts by any stretch of the imagination...

Though I have binged several seasons of “Law&Order”…

Seriously, though, I don’t see it being that hard. If he was an ordinary citizen, having stolen property in his possession that he didn’t even acknowledge having until having been called out on it is a red flag. The seriousness of the information he had in his possession is another. And, since the information itself is the real thing of value, not the physical media it is stored on, you want to see if it’s been disseminated, which means you need to check out electronic devices present to see if copies were made or sent out. Since national security is involved, I would want them to err on the side of caution.

Buuuut… in the real world, we know that the wealthy and powerful are immune from “normal” treatment. For examples see DJT’s entire life, the parents of Jon Benet Ramsey, etc.

I say again, I’m not a law expert. Maybe it is easy to get a warrant, maybe it’s not. I willingly admit to having no idea how these things happen in reality (as opposed to the L&O universe).

Now, I get a little more angry than most at this story. I used to handle material above TS while I was in the Navy. One submarine patrol we literally lost thousands of man hours and almost had a mutiny over one TS book that was lost. It turned out that the captain had it (fuck you Rusty!) in his safe, and everything could have been avoided if 1) the captain hadn’t thought himself above procedure and signed out the book normally and 2) the chief petty officer who searched the CO’s stateroom had some actual balls and insisted (again, per procedure) that the CO open his personal safe instead of backing down when the captain (again, fuck you Rusty) declined to do so.

[reACTIONary]

113. As you say, the information...

As you say, the information itself is the real thing of value, not the physical media it is stored on, you want to see if it’s been disseminated.

And if it has been disseminated, and if the copies that were disseminated are in the national archive, in what sense did he have stolen property in his possession?

[Shipwack]

114. You're not making any sense...

First off, having the media with the classified data on it (be it words on paper or bits on a floppy” is having stolen property. Period.

If the data is copied (photo of a page, bits copied to a hard drive), and the originals are returned*, that might -not- be having stolen property, but it is having data that you are not authorized to have, and that is a crime. You need to examine the computers and phones and call logs on the property to see if that information has been sent to others, also a crime, but also needed for damage control.

*Just because the boxes of info were returned doesn’t mean that a crime wasn’t committed. Also, Trump initially refused to return the boxes when asked. Only when the Justice Department got involved did they relent. A crime was committed, and for whatever reason he is (once again) allied to get away with it.

[reACTIONary]

115. This isn't correct....

if the information is turned over to the archivist, say as a copy, the requirements of the PRA have been meet. As far as originals vs copies, there are probably dozens of anything that ends up on the POTUS desk. Tens for classified material. So, which of those is the "original"?

This is a real scandal - but as a crime it is more than likely a big waste of time.

[Shipwack]

116. You do realize that we're talking about classified material, right?

The issue is not whether or history will know what Trump had for lunch, or what his daily schedule was.

The problem is that he took material that was Top Secret out of the White House, and to an unsecured and unauthorized location, his house.

“Top Secret “ means information that would cause exceptionally grave damage to national security if made publicly available. The fact that Trump ever had access to this is bad enough, but him taking it with him when he left office needs to be investigated and punished.

[reACTIONary]

117. There are two distinct issues....

... one is the presidential records act, which is the basis for the claim that he "stole government property". The other is what criminal liability he may have for inappropriately handling classified documents.

I suspect this will not result in criminal prosecution either; this would be his defense....

The POTUS has ultimate authority to decide what is and is not classified. If he didn't consider them classified, then they were not. Regardless of what was rubber stamped on them.

The process to classify and to declassify is established by Presidential Executive Order 13526. Given that it is a dicta of the president, it seems that the president would have the final say in matters pertaining to classification or declassification. In fact, the president is designated in the order as the final arbitrator of any question regarding classification.

https://www.archives.gov/isoo/policy-documents/cnsi-eo.html#three

The executive order has a section pertaining to declassification. It does not prescribe a process so much as it lays out who has the authority to do so. Included is "a supervisory official of either the originator or his or her successor in function, if the supervisory official has original classification authority". The president is the supervisor of them all, and certainly does have original classification authority.

Also is included is a provision regarding information "that the need to protect such information may be outweighed by the public interest in disclosure of the information". "..in these cases the information should be declassified". This is to be done by an official who "will determine, as an exercise of discretion, whether the public interest in disclosure outweighs the damage to the national security that might reasonably be expected from disclosure" Note that this is a matter of discretion.

The bottom line is that this is a scandal that is worth amplifying and using against him, but IMHO isn't going to result in any criminal prosecution.... BUT I COULD BE WRONG.

[multigraincracker]

40. If you have been following him....

He never read any classified stuff. His attention span was too short. Had to have been some person that brought him his coffee that did all of that stuff.
It's clear and documented, he played golf, watched tv, scarfed down fast food and took naps the whole time.
Those excuses work for me, because that means he can't run again on an admitted record like that.

[Jetheels]

54. So by your logic someone could steal a box of diamonds and there's no crime because

the thief doesn’t even where jewelry.

[multigraincracker]

83. Sorry I missed using the "sarcasm" thingy.

I thought the emoji I used would have worked.

Of course I'm talking about what his excuse will be. Only those that lack any idea of justice would buy into it.

[Midnight Writer]

41. in the early stages of considering preparations to assign a committee to look into feasibility of

opening a preliminary investigation

[Evolve Dammit]

43. I too have lost faith in our system of justice. This is a felony theft by an "adult." I just sat on

a Grand Jury where homeless folks were indicted for petty shoplifting and will go to prison. Two-tiered justice is the Rule of Law in Americuh. It's quite disgusting.

[SoonerPride]

45. IOKIYAR

[dsharp88]

91. I was going to say the same thing

I’m glad I wasn’t the only person thinking that.

[Aussie105]

47. Carpet. Broom. Lift corner of carpet. Sweep.

Nothing to see here folks, move along.

Failed#45 still has supporters in a lot of influential places, it seems.

I'm confused about the word '_orruption'. Does it start with 'C', 'Q', 'GOP', or what?

"The statue of our lady of justice or Lady Justice is always seen wearing a blindfold, and this has been going on for several centuries now. The blindfold covering the eyes of lady justice represents objectivity. This means that justice is objective."

Blindfold = objectivity? Or just looking the other way, not seeing what others are seeing when it suits some?
Inquiring minds want to know!

[UCmeNdc]

48. K&R

[Flaleftist]

49. He sure didnt take them for his own reading pleasure.

So that begs the question. To whom is he selling classified information?

[JoeOtterbein]

50. Trump is White, Wealthy and Well-known

The same people our Justice system is set up to protect. Not prosecute.

[JohnSJ]

53. For what it is worth the DOJ has begun an investigation on this

https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/07/politics/justice-department-national-archives-mar-a-lago-boxes/index.html

[SYFROYH]

55. Not sure if it is true, but I heard the President can declassify materials...

...with a declaration.

[NullTuples]

86. I'm pretty sure there's a full on process that involves writing

https://www.intelligence.senate.gov/laws/national-security-information

[Trueblue1968]

56. lock trump up. 40 years in the slammer !!!!!

[Jetheels]

57. If your wealthy you can steal top secret documents, no worries,

if your poor, a miscarriage lands you in prison.
This is where we are as a nation in 2022.
Your not supposed to understand.

[Deb]

58. He stole State Secrets and put the US at risk, not a file or papers or boxes or material.

I say prosecute or set a regrettable precedent.

The least that should be done is to deny him access to Top Secret info again.

Has an entity has been threatening the use of a dirty or chemical bombs?

It's all I can imagine that repeatedly keeps appropriate prosecutions from happening.

[Stuart G]

63. "TIME" will tell, "Trump is not above the law"..When the indictments come, we will know more

and..........If you think that there will be ..."no federal indictments"..Then you are wrong in my opinion...

...........".Time".. is NOT.. on the side of Donald Trump! (& I think Trump knows it)

.............Trump thinks he can "tromp all over laws"....But "TIME" ...says...." he can NOT"

..Just wait and see ........... ..........."who is right?...Time or Trump?.....my guess? ....TIME..........oh I want to add this:

Joe Biden and Merrick Garland are on the side of:.. Mr. Time, not Mr. Trump!!!

we will see who wins...My guess is .....................Mr. Time!!

[BlueBassLines]

61. Famous, yes but definitely not rich

[SheltieLover]

62. Absofuckingloutely!

[Fiendish Thingy]

66. Well, you know Trump didn't pack those boxes himself and carry them out of the WH...

So the FBI needs to figure out who did, and what Trump’s involvement actually was.

[LAS14]

69. Precisely. That's the stuff the DOJ has to deal with.

[reACTIONary]

77. Classified Documents....

The POTUS has ultimate authority to decide what is and is not classified. If he didn't consider them classified, then they were not. Regardless of what was rubber stamped on them.

The process to classify and to declassify is established by Presidential Executive Order 13526. Given that it is a dicta of the president, it seems that the president would have the final say in matters pertaining to classification or declassification. In fact, the president is designated in the order as the final arbitrator of any question regarding classification.

https://www.archives.gov/isoo/policy-documents/cnsi-eo.html#three

The executive order has a section pertaining to declassification. It does not prescribe a process so much as it lays out who has the authority to do so. Included is "a supervisory official of either the originator or his or her successor in function, if the supervisory official has original classification authority". The president is the supervisor of them all, and certainly does have original classification authority.

Also is included is a provision regarding information "that the need to protect such information may be outweighed by the public interest in disclosure of the information". "..in these cases the information should be declassified". This is to be done by an official who "will determine, as an exercise of discretion, whether the public interest in disclosure outweighs the damage to the national security that might reasonably be expected from disclosure" Note that this is a matter of discretion.

[DallasNE]

78. The Answer Is Obvious

Our system of justice itself is corrupt. That is what happens when it is not independent. Democrats can't charge Trump with crimes, even when having a mountain of corruption evidence because they fear payback time when the gop come back into power. Except not charging Trump will gain them no favors. Recrimination is just around the corner anyway.

[Jack-o-Lantern]

79. Fitzmas, two impeachments, directing a mob to sack the Capital...

Justice? Never happen.

[louis-t]

81. He will blame some staffer or the movers.

When asked why the National Archives had to negotiate with his attorneys to get them back, he will scream "fake news."

[SleeplessinSoCal]

90. Evidence of the desperate need to remain above the law.

It truly helps explain the rationale by thieves to steal an election.

[evolves]

95. Here's all you need to know:

On November 22, 1963, the President of the United States was murdered in broad daylight on the crowded street of a major American city. In almost 60 years, no one has ever been brought to justice for this.

What makes anyone think a few boxes of classified materials being stolen is going to be punished in any way?

[alterfurz]

97. same as it ever was, only more so...

Laws are like spiders' webs which, if anything small and weak falls into them they ensnare it, but the large and powerful break through and escape. -- Solon, ca. 600 B.C.E.

[Shipwack]

98. This is way too little, way too late...

As soon as the existence of the 15 boxes was known, a convoy of Federal agents should have pulled up to Mar-A-Lago and proceeded to ransack the place, taking the 15 boxes, making sure there were no others, and verifying that nothing had been stored/copied i.e. confiscating phones and computers.

However, in the “real world” too many are afraid of making Trump and the Republicans angry. They want to avoid accusations of being vindictive, or of partisan investigations. “What if the Republicans decide to do a raid on Biden when he leaves office?”, they moan, wringing their hands.

This is a mistake, of course. Just as you can’t treat intolerance with tolerance, you don’t treat blatant criminality with kid gloves.

The only possible mitigating factor is just how “top secret” the documents are. The number of hamburgers a submarine loads up might be classified “top secret” (as would the rest of its load out), but it’s not a cause of grave concern. However, submarine contingency plans for wartime would be a serious breach of national security. My counter arguments are 1) these are just the 15 boxes we know about; there might be more 2) an example needs to be made that this is in no way acceptable.

[Blue Owl]

109. Someone's clearly looking out for the Slobfather and his klan

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