Mar-a-Largo raided by FBI?

[lpetrich]

I should add that the documents might also describe military doctrine: when might nuclear bombs be used, who might authorize their use, and what communication channels are available from the authorizer(s) to the bomb-delivery system (bomber, missile launcher). Also details of maintenance of nuclear bombs and state of repair of them.

Read the full Trump Mar-a-Lago search warrant : NPR
noting
trump warrant unsealed - Document Viewer : NPR

This is how much detail the warrant goes into:

ATTACHMENT A
Property to be searched

The premises to be searched, 1100 S Ocean Blvd, Palm Beach, FL 33480, is further described as a resort, club, and residence located near the intersection of Southern Blvd and S Ocean Bid. It is described as a mansion with approximately 58 bedrooms, 33 bathrooms, on a 17-acre estate. The locations to be searched include the “45 Office,” all storage rooms, and all other rooms or areas within the premises used or available to be used by FPOTUS and his staff and in which boxes or documents could be stored, including all structures or buildings on the estate. It does not include areas currently (i.e., at the time of the search) being occupied, rented. or used by third parties (such as Mar-a-Largo Members) and not otherwise used or available to be used by FPOTUS and his staff, such as private guest suites.

FPOTUS = former POTUS, the President of the United States

In effect, search all of Mar-a-Lago where documents might be stored.

ATTACHMENT B
Property be seized

All physical documents and records constituting evidence, contraband, fruits of crime, or other items illegally possessed in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 793, 2071, or 1519, including the following:

a. Any physical documents with classification markings, along with any containers/boxes (including any other contents) in which such documents are located, as well as any other containers/boxes that are collectively stored or found together with the aforementioned documents and containers/boxes;

b.. Information, including communications in any form, regarding the retrieval, storage, or transmission of national defense information or classified material;

c. Any government and/or Presidential Records created between January 20.2017, and January 20, 2021; or

d. Any evidence of the knowing alteration, destruction, or concealment of any government and/or Presidential Records, or of any documents with classification markings.

The property receipt lists a lot of boxes and documents and the like, without going into detail about any of them. The most detail is "Executive Grant of Clemency re: Roger Jason Stone,Jr."

 

[Swammerdami]

WHO gathered these Top-Secret documents for Trump? It's not like he reads or knows what he is looking at... He had HELP. Help from the Energy Dept? Help from the CIA? Help from NSA? Help from DNI? All of the above?

Good questions.

A lot of top secret information is on a "Need to Know" basis, and shouldn't ever be present at the White House at all. This certainly includes details of nuclear weapons design.

Perhaps POTUS can demand he be given any document at all, and even be given blue-prints for hydrogen bombs, but such a request should have certainly raised some eyebrows! If he HAD received such documents, perhaps the relevant Pentagon authorities would be obligated to keep mum. Or would they be patriotic enough to break their oaths of silence and call out Trump's probable violations of espionage and treason laws?

 

[bilby]

WHO gathered these Top-Secret documents for Trump? It's not like he reads or knows what he is looking at... He had HELP. Help from the Energy Dept? Help from the CIA? Help from NSA? Help from DNI? All of the above?

Good questions.

A lot of top secret information is on a "Need to Know" basis, and shouldn't ever be present at the White House at all. This certainly includes details of nuclear weapons design.

Perhaps POTUS can demand he be given any document at all, and even be given blue-prints for hydrogen bombs, but such a request should have certainly raised some eyebrows! If he HAD received such documents, perhaps the relevant Pentagon authorities would be obligated to keep mum. Or would they be patriotic enough to break their oaths of silence and call out Trump's probable violations of espionage and treason laws?

Yeah, the President's need to know includes policy, intelligence, and plans for deployment and use of nuclear weapons, but doesn't include technical specifications or designs - he is neither qualified nor needed in the design area, other than needing to be confident that the things will work as he requires and expects them to, if he orders their use.

It's not like there's a likely scenario in which POTUS would need to build, repair, deploy, or defuse such a device - he has people for that.

Of course, the question then is whether the classification of this information is such that it can be withheld from a POTUS, if he requests to be given it, and if not, whether Trump did request it, or was provided with it.

It's certainly more reasonable to assume that classified information in the President's possession has to do with policies on use, and intelligence on other nations' capabilities, than on the details of how American nukes are designed and built.

I doubt we will ever know for sure; I suspect though that the POTUS may well have the automatic authority to see anything and everything that he desires, without having to provide a reason (beyond "I am the President and I say so").

Or at least, I suspect that that was the case until now. The people who write the rules no longer have reason to be confident that no president would betray or abuse such an authority.

Regardless, the damage that could ensue from the release of US policy and/or intelligence information to unauthorised persons is severe, even if that information doesn't include the technical and design information those unauthorised persons might use to build their own nuclear arsenals.

 

[lpetrich]

As to why Donald Trump kept those documents, consider his personality. He is not much of a reader, and he has little interest in anything other than himself. So he would likely want to sell those documents to some buyer with a lot of $$$ for him. Saudi Arabia? Russia? China? North Korea?

Furthermore, those documents are not likely to contain the details of how to build nuclear bombs unless he got some people to violate need-to-know about those details. A President would likely have documents about deployment, readiness, doctrine, and the like, both for US nuclear bombs and for other nations' ones. Russia's and China's leaders might like such information, and Saudi Arabia's leaders might like such info about Israel.

 

[lpetrich]

Christopher Bouzy on Twitter: "For his entire presidency, ..." / Twitter

For his entire presidency, Trump didn't care about intelligence briefings, and he didn't read much of anything. But suddenly, on his way out of the White House, he decided to take a few reading materials that just happened to be classified. But wait, there is more...

Someone informed the FBI about the documents, and the FBI were forced to act. Trump tried to hide the documents, and when he was subpoenaed to return the documents, he ignored the subpoena. Let me repeat that. He tried to hide the documents and ignored a subpoena...

How did the informant know about the documents? Did the informant help Trump take the documents? Did Trump just tell the informant he was in possession of the documents? Did Trump show the informant the documents? Did Trump try to sell the documents to the informant?...

Trump could've argued that the documents were accidentally transported to his home; his people were incompetent. However, the fact he was given multiple opportunities to return the documents demonstrates he knew what he was doing. The DOJ will indict Trump.

 

[lpetrich]

After FBI searches Trump resort, Fox News and right-wing media rally around him : NPR

From Fox News, to Newsmax, to PJ Media, to the Blaze, to the wilds of right-wing talk radio, YouTube, blogs and social media, the line was consistent. The rhetoric was clear, it was dark, and even, at times, apocalyptic.

"It almost feels like a pre-emptive coup," conservative talk show host Buck Sexton told Fox News' Jesse Watters last night.

"This is so wrong, so tyrannical," said right-wing YouTube and Blaze commentator Steven Crowder on a video call for "war" that had more than 600,000 views in eight hours. "There needs to be a hill you're willing to die on. This is it." (Crowder added he was not calling for actual violence, then called for his viewers to fight fire with fire.)

"What the Biden administration did today was a shot between the eyes of this Republic," Fox News host Mark Levin told listeners of his Westwood One radio program. Matt Schlapp, the chairman of the American Conservative Union and CPAC, wrote for Fox that the incident showed the U.S. had become a "Third World country."

Former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik told Newsmax he believed Democrats would try to assassinate the former president.

 

[lpetrich]

Far-Right Extremists Are Violently Threatening the Trump Search-Warrant Judge

“This is the piece of shit judge who approved FBI’s raid on Mar-a-Lago,” a user wrote on the pro-Trump message board formerly known as TheDonald. “I see a rope around his neck.”

Responding, another user wrote: “Idgaf [I don’t give a fuck] anymore. Name? Address? Put that shit all up on here.” Moments later, a different member replied with what appears to be Reinhart’s current address, phone numbers, previous addresses, and names of possible relatives.

In another post on the same message board, one user commented, “Let's find out if he has children....where they go to school, where they live...EVERYTHING.”

Synagogue of judge who approved Trump's search warrant cancels Shabbat service

Judge who approved Trump search warrant attacked for synagogue involvement – The Forward

 

[fromderinside]

Far-Right Extremists Are Violently Threatening the Trump Search-Warrant Judge

“This is the piece of shit judge who approved FBI’s raid on Mar-a-Lago,” a user wrote on the pro-Trump message board formerly known as TheDonald. “I see a rope around his neck.”

Responding, another user wrote: “Idgaf [I don’t give a fuck] anymore. Name? Address? Put that shit all up on here.” Moments later, a different member replied with what appears to be Reinhart’s current address, phone numbers, previous addresses, and names of possible relatives.

In another post on the same message board, one user commented, “Let's find out if he has children....where they go to school, where they live...EVERYTHING.”

Synagogue of judge who approved Trump's search warrant cancels Shabbat service

Judge who approved Trump search warrant attacked for synagogue involvement – The Forward

Baseball history doesn't correlate with political savvy. Just sayin'

Surely we can do better representing political takes.

 

[bilby]

Sure, there's a preemptive coup in progress against Donald Trump.

In unrelated news, I want it on the record that the Queensland Police Commissioner is planning to rob the Westpac bank in Beenleigh tomorrow, so if anyone - particularly anyone associated with the QPS - accuses me of that crime, we will all know that they're a bunch of meanie liars.

On a further completely unrelated note, if anyone in the Beenleigh area knows where I can obtain a sawn-off shotgun and a ski mask, no questions asked, please PM me with the details.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

It would seem that security camera footage at Mar-A-Lago shows that after Trump was visited to ask for return of these purloined documents, people were moving boxes in and out of the now infamous storage room. This raid may not be over and done with.


"But her e-mails!"

 

[Ford]

No, it won't.

The claim by Trump's attorney sounds more like throwing Trump's less astute followers a bone.

"This isn't about national security. It's all about keeping Trump from running for president in 2024."
Tom

Yes. Yes it is.

Trump should be kept as far away as possible from any classified documents, because national security. If all he did was gather up (or have his staff gather up) some documents and put them in a store room at his resort, that would be a national security risk the likes of which hasn't been seen since...um...when was the last time boxes of highly classified documents critical to national security were taken to an unlocked store room in the clubhouse of a golf resort?

It reminds me of my ex mother in law's second husband. Like Trump, he was old and unpleasant. Unlike Trump, he was a recovered raging alcoholic. Before he came over to visit, my ex mother in law (mother outlaw?) implored us to remove any and all alcoholic beverages from our house whether it was a couple beers in the fridge or cooking wine, because he couldn't even be in the presence of alcohol. Was he going to get up out of his wheelchair and fight us over that Bud Light in the fridge? Maybe not...but in any case it was a threat to his exceedingly fragile sobriety, so we complied.

This is like that, but instead of booze, it's the military, intelligence, and nuclear capabilities of the most powerful country on the planet that need to be kept from the unpleasant old man.

 

[Toni]

No, it won't.

The claim by Trump's attorney sounds more like throwing Trump's less astute followers a bone.

"This isn't about national security. It's all about keeping Trump from running for president in 2024."
Tom

To me, it sounds more like continuing the grift as long as possible. How else will lawyers get paid?

Keeping Trump and his clown car as far away from the White House as possible is at least half about national security. It always was. It's even more important now. The other half of keeping Trump and his clown car as far away from the White House as possible is preserving our nation, domestic security and tranquility, truth, justice, freedom, and all that stuff.

 

[ZiprHead]

What an asshole...

 

[Jarhyn]

What an asshole...

The only reason I can see him stumping for this really, is his likely violation of it.

 

[Elixir]

The only reason I can see him stumping for this really, is his likely violation of it

Right. Whadja do, Rand?

 

[RVonse]

As to why Donald Trump kept those documents, consider his personality. He is not much of a reader, and he has little interest in anything other than himself. So he would likely want to sell those documents to some buyer with a lot of $$$ for him. Saudi Arabia? Russia? China? North Korea?

A billionaire risking his freedom in order to hurt America in order to add a few pennies more to his savings account. Trump is already worth more than North Korea....this just does not sound reasonable to me. No matter how evil you think this guy is.

Of course I have seen some pretty stupid things here at work. Like people losing their 100k/yr job because they were caught stealing $2 worth of copper.....

 

[Politesse]

And they accuse Democrats of disloyalty!


He's not wrong though, the Act has been most notoriously abused.

 

[Elixir]

That's why they have SCIFs to begin with. You need to be 100% sure that there's not a janitor or repairman or window cleaner who might have incidental access to sensitive material.

A trumpsucker friend of my BIL posted yesterday that Trump is well within his rights to have top secret and sensitive compartmented information in his house because he has a SCIF there. Infuckingcredible. Rumpsuckers thinking their idiot idol is the only private citizen with a SCIF in their house.
(In fact he DID have a SCIF there way back WHEN HE WAS PRESIDENT.)

 

[Toni]

As to why Donald Trump kept those documents, consider his personality. He is not much of a reader, and he has little interest in anything other than himself. So he would likely want to sell those documents to some buyer with a lot of $$$ for him. Saudi Arabia? Russia? China? North Korea?

A billionaire risking his freedom in order to hurt America in order to add a few pennies more to his savings account. Trump is already worth more than North Korea....this just does not sound reasonable to me. No matter how evil you think this guy is.

Of course I have seen some pretty stupid things here at work. Like people losing their 100k/yr job because they were caught stealing $2 worth of copper.....

Dude: He’s not a billionaire. His financial empire is not just smoke and mirrors—it’s cheap smokey mirrors that are more than just a little chipped and cracked.

I really don’t quite understand why people like anything about Trump. Is it that he has money? (He doesn’t). Is it the illusion that he’s a self made man? (He’s not). Is it that he’s an independent, no-nonsense rule breaker? He’s anything but independent, he’s full of nonsense, but yes, he does like breaking rules, norms, laws, contracts, agreement ts of all kinds. He’s not remotely a good person. He’s unintelligent t, tho is as little as possible and when he is forced to think, he thinks only of his own self interest which is: MORE.

Take every single stereotype of selfish, self centered ignorant arrogant tasteless Ugly American and toll them into one gigantic bloated mess and you have: Trump. He makes everything he touches ugly and dirty and corrupt.

 

[TV and credit cards]

As to why Donald Trump kept those documents, consider his personality. He is not much of a reader, and he has little interest in anything other than himself. So he would likely want to sell those documents to some buyer with a lot of $$$ for him. Saudi Arabia? Russia? China? North Korea?

A billionaire risking his freedom in order to hurt America in order to add a few pennies more to his savings account. Trump is already worth more than North Korea....this just does not sound reasonable to me. No matter how evil you think this guy is.

Of course I have seen some pretty stupid things here at work. Like people losing their 100k/yr job because they were caught stealing $2 worth of copper.....

If Trump were reasonable, he would act in the country's best interest. Trump has spent a lifetime acting in his own self interest. He does not weigh the consequences of his actions. There is just the benefit presented to him in the moment.