Opinion: A seismic shift in Trump's legal woes.

[Stuart G]

Source: CNN:

Opinion by Norman Eisen, E. Danya Perry and Dennis Aftergut
Updated 11:47 AM ET, Tue August 9, 2022
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The search warrant executed on former President Donald Trump's premises at Mar-a-Lago represents a seismic shift in the overall landscape of the investigations against him. We have long forecast his deepening legal peril, but this puts an exclamation point on his exposure. As a nation, we are now rapidly headed into barely charted waters.

While the facts are just beginning to emerge, we know that on Monday morning a group of FBI agents executed a search warrant and conducted an exacting examination of the property, including accessing a safe, according to Trump, and leaving with a quantity of documents, according to a CNN source. Trump reacted with predictable outrage, claiming that his home was "under siege, raided, and occupied" and that "Nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before."

He's correct on that last point. But we have never seen evidence of this kind of behavior by a president before either. CNN is reporting that the focus of the search warrant is on documents that Trump removed from the White House, including some 15 boxes of materials that have now been recovered. These materials reportedly included classified documents.

There are serious penalties, including criminal ones, for removing, damaging or destroying any official government document. The law treats a mishandling of classified documents even more severely. But even in the case of nonclassified documents, the penalties for mishandling can include disqualification from holding future federal office (although that would be a protracted process and Trump might challenge it on multiple grounds, including arguing that it impermissibly varies the constitutional qualifications for the presidency).

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/09/opinions/trump-fbi-search-mar-a-lago-eisen-aftergut-perry/index.html

[wryter2000]

1. Someone told me they removed 55 boxes

Is that true? If so, they collected much more than 15 boxes of documents.

[SharonClark]

3. Someone?

[wryter2000]

6. Just a friend who follows the news

I wasn't putting her out as any kind of expert. Maybe just someone who'd heard something I hadn't. I'm not a journalist, and I'm not reporting this as news.

[NickB79]

4. The 15 boxes are the ones the got back in February

So they already knew he'd taken documents. They got a search warrant because he hadn't returned everything they suspected he'd taken.

[wryter2000]

5. Interesting

Thanks

[Novara]

7. it's much, much more serious than that

I keep repeating what I've heard legal experts say today (I've been listening to coverage of this all day), but those who've worked in the DOJ say that in order to get this many top people to authorize this sort of a really serious, unprecedented search warrant, the have compelling, fresh evidence of an ongoing crime. If they just wanted material that he should have returned, they could have issued a subpoena. Having FBI agents come themselves with a search warrant means there's evidence of a very serious crime (not that taking classified documents isn't serious, but more serious than even that) and it's a matter of urgency.

I am just repeating what I've heard, but I've heard it from several different people in the field who know this stuff. It isn't just one guy's opinion; several of them have said the same thing.

[H2O Man]

8. +1

[Stuart G]

10. Great Post..Novera...#7 Yes, Far more serious than that. Please read Post #7 by Novera

[PortTack]

14. On going crime, a matter of Ntl security...he's selling information!

[pwb]

2. His wife loaded up a truck. But

she can be trusted.

[H2O Man]

9. Check the new grave

on his golf course.

[Hekate]

13. There is that

[MiniMe]

11. You aren't "Nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before."

You are a former President. Yes, it does make a difference

[Hekate]

12. Seismic shift? In California-speak, I hope this is The Big One.

Please.