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FBI search of Mar-a-Lago

Coordinates: 57°18′22″N 4°27′32″W / 57.30611°N 4.45889°W / 57.30611; -4.45889
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Mar-a-Lago, Palm Beach, Florida
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57°18′22″N 4°27′32″W / 57.30611°N 4.45889°W / 57.30611; -4.45889 The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, the residence of former U.S. president Donald Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, on August 8, 2022. Agents seized 11 sets of documents that were marked as classified: one set at the highest classification level, "top secret/sensitive compartmented information"; four sets at the "top secret" level; three sets at the "secret" level; and three sets at the "confidential" level.

The search warrant, released a few days after the search, showed that the FBI was investigating Trump for three possible federal crimes: removal or destruction of government records; destroying or concealing records "with the intent to impede, obstruct or influence" federal government activity; and violating the Espionage Act regarding unauthorized retention of national defense information.[1][2]

Background

Handling, storage, and disposition of U.S. government records

See also: Donald Trump § Post-presidential investigations

The Presidential Records Act establishes that presidential records belong to the United States and must be surrendered to the Archivist of the United States at the end of a president's term of office or second term of office, if consecutive.[3][4] Unauthorized removal and retention of classified information of the United States government is a criminal offense under U.S. federal law; it has been a felony since the enactment of S. 139 (FISA Amendments Reauthorization Act of 2017), a law signed by President Donald Trump in January 2018 which increased the maximum term of imprisonment for this offense from one year to five.[5]

Criminal laws listed on search warrant

Section 793 of Title 18 of the United States Code, enacted as part of the Espionage Act of 1917, makes the unauthorized retention or disclosure of information related to national defense that could be used to harm the United States or aid a foreign adversary a crime. The maximum penalty is 10 years in prison.[2][6][a] The Espionage Act preceded the modern classification system of the United States government, and this offense may occur regardless of whether the documents are classified; unclassified "national defense information" would still be covered under the Espionage Act.[6]

Section 1519 of Title 18, enacted as part of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act, criminalizes the act of destroying or concealing documents or records "with the intent to impede, obstruct or influence the investigation or proper administration of any matter" within the jurisdiction of a federal department or agencies. The maximum penalty is 20 years in prison.[6][b]

Section 2071 of Title 18 criminalizes the theft or destruction of government records. The maximum penalty is 10 years in prison.[2][6][c]

Trump's handling of U.S. government records during his term in office

Handling of classified material

Main article: Donald Trump's disclosures of classified information

During his four years as U.S. president, Trump took a cavalier attitude toward U.S. classified information.[10][11][12] After U.S. intelligence assessed in 2017 that the Russian government sought to manipulate the 2016 presidential election and promote Trump's candidacy, Trump ranted against what he claimed was a "deep state" and viewed the assessment as an insult.[10] Months into his presidency, Trump revealed highly classified information to Russian officials in an Oval Office meeting, forcing the CIA to extract a key Moscow source developed over years.[10] In a July 2018 summit in Helsinki with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Trump accepted Russia's denials that it had interfered in the 2016 election, rejecting the U.S. government's conclusions to the contrary.[10] Trump frequently blasted the U.S. intelligence agencies on Twitter, and on two occasions, Trump revealed classified information on his Twitter feed (in 2017, he made a Twitter post revealing a CIA program in Syria, and in August 2019, he posted a classified satellite photo of a site in Iran that revealed U.S. satellite surveillance capabilities).[10]

Trump's erratic behavior led to mistrust from the U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies, who were also alarmed by Trump's mixing with guests during his frequent trips to Mar-a-Lago, viewing the practice as "ripe to be exploited by a foreign spy service eager for access to the epicenter of American power".[10] Mar-a-Lago is frequented by its hundreds of members, as well as guests who visit or rent the facilities.[13] In 2017, after North Korea conducted a ballistic-missile test, at least one Mar-a-Lago patron posted photos on social media of Trump talking on his cell phone and conferring with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the resort's dining room.[10] In 2019, authorities arrested a Chinese national carrying phones and other electronic devices who had left a reception area at the club; the incident heightened security concerns regarding the club.[12][13]

In October 2020, Trump said on Twitter that he had "fully authorized the total declassification" of all documents related to what he called "the Russia hoax" and the Hillary Clinton email controversy. However, news organizations were told that these documents were still classified, and Trump's then-chief of staff Mark Meadows in a sworn federal court filing said that Trump told him that Trump's "statements on Twitter were not self-executing declassification orders and do not require the declassification or release of any particular documents".[14]

During Trump's presidency, a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) was operational at Mar-a-Lago for communications with the White House Situation Room and Pentagon.[15] The SCIF was removed after he left office.[16]

Alleged Defiance of Presidential Records Act

Allegedly in defiance of the Presidential Records Act (which requires the retention of official records), Trump as president frequently shredded papers.[17][13] Advisers regularly saw him destroy documents at the White House and Mar-a-Lago,[17][13] as well as aboard Air Force One.[17] Trump continued this practice throughout his presidency, despite repeated admonishments from at least two of his chiefs of staff and from the White House counsel.[17] Trump's indiscriminate shredding of paper extended to "both sensitive and mundane" materials.[17] In an attempt to deal with Trump's habit, his aides, early in his presidency, developed special practices and protocols,[17][18] with staffers from the Office of the Staff Secretary or the Oval Office Operations team attempting to retrieve the piles of torn paper, and staffers from the White House Office of Records Management attempting to piece documents back together, using clear tape.[17] Not all materials were recovered; Trump White House staffers used "burn bags" frequently to destroy documents rather than retain them for handling in accordance with preservation requirements.[17] On at least two occasions, Trump apparently flushed documents down the toilet at the White House Residence.[19][20]

Departure from office

Trump's presidential term ended at noon on January 20, 2021.[21] His departure from the White House was "rushed and chaotic" because he spent his final days in office attempting to overturn his defeat in the 2020 United States presidential election, his false allegations of voter fraud having led to the January 6 United States Capitol attack and his second impeachment. The Wall Street Journal quoted a former aide as saying: "If you only start packing with two days left to go, you're just running low on time. And if he's the one just throwing things in boxes, who knows what could happen?"[22] The day before he left office, in a letter sent to Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero, Trump designated seven senior Trump administration officials "as his representatives to handle all future requests for presidential records" including his chief of staff Mark Meadows, his White House Counsel Pat A. Cipollone, and Deputy White House Counsel Patrick F. Philbin.[23] In 2021, Trump reportedly told close associates that he regarded some presidential documents, such as warm correspondence with the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, as his personal property, although U.S. records legally belong to the government.[1]

When Trump left office, President Joe Biden barred him from receiving the intelligence briefings traditionally given to former presidents, stating there was "no need" due to his "erratic behavior".[11][24]

NARA retrieves missing classified records from Mar-a-Lago

May 2021

During May 2021, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the federal agency that preserves government records, contacted Trump's representatives regarding missing presidential documents.[21] NARA realized that the missing documents included several important items, including Trump's correspondence with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un as well as the Hurricane Dorian map that Trump altered with a sharpie pen.[21][25] NARA negotiated with Trump's lawyers throughout 2021 seeking the return of the material.[23] By fall 2021, after months of discussions with Trump's lawyers, NARA became frustrated with the slow pace of documents being turned over.[21]

January 2022

In January 2022, NARA visited Mar-a-Lago, Trump's Florida residence, and retrieved 15 boxes of documents, gifts, and other government property[23][26] that had been improperly taken from the White House.[27] NARA said, "These records should have been transferred to NARA from the White House at the end of the Trump administration in January 2021."[23] Archivists determined that some of the documents contained "sensitive national security information", including some documents clearly marked "classified" and "top secret".[28][29][27][26] "Top secret" is a U.S. government classification for information that, if an unauthorized disclosure occurred, "could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security".[26]

The boxes retrieved from Mar-a-Lago contained materials related to special access programs (SAP), a classification reserved for extremely sensitive U.S. operations conducted abroad and with protocols that significantly limit access to the information.[30][31][32] This material included signals intelligence.[33]

February 2022

In February 2022, NARA referred the matter to the Department of Justice (DOJ).[23] The documents were stored in a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) while DOJ officials considered how to proceed.[26]

The revaluation raised concern within Congress; the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, led by U.S. Representative Carolyn B. Maloney, began an investigation.[23][34] In a letter to NARA, Maloney wrote, "I am deeply concerned that former President Trump may have violated the law through his intentional efforts to remove and destroy records that belong to the American people."[23] She requested the National Archives to provide documents about discussions among top Trump advisers about preserving and storing White House records.[34]

FBI/DOJ launches criminal investigation and issues subpoenas

April 2022

The FBI interviewed Trump aides at Mar-a-Lago about the handling of presidential records.[21] At the request of the National Archives, the Department of Justice (DOJ) opened a criminal investigation and initiated a grand jury process in April 2022.[29][27][21] The same month, DOJ instructed NARA not to share further details about the materials recovered from Mar-a-Lago with the House Oversight Committee, indicating that the FBI had opened a criminal investigation.[23]

May 2022

The DOJ issued a subpoena to the National Archives for access to the classified documents on May 12.[29][27][21] The DOJ issued a grand jury subpoena to Trump's legal team for sensitive national security documents at Mar-a-Lago.[31] Trump's advisers repeatedly urged him to fully comply with the subpoena, despite his desire to keep holding onto some documents.[11]

June 2022

Investigators from the DOJ and the FBI met with Trump's attorneys at Mar-a-Lago on June 3 seeking more information about the improper removal of classified material.[29][27][21] The FBI served Trump's attorneys with the grand jury subpoena and removed the subpoenaed documents.[31] The investigators were tipped about the possibility of more classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, according to The Wall Street Journal. Additionally, The Guardian reported the DOJ grew concerned about the presence of classified materials still at Mar-a-Lago through its interactions with Trump's lawyers.[35] When agents observed the room where the documents were being stored, "someone familiar with the stored papers told investigators there may be still more classified documents at the private club" beyond the boxes Trump surrendered to NARA.[36][37] According to Newsweek and The Wall Street Journal, an informant told the FBI where Trump was keeping classified documents.[38][39][36][40] Both the disbarred lawyer Michael Cohen and Trump's estranged niece Mary L. Trump have speculated that Jared Kushner could be the informant.[41]

After the June 3 meeting, one of Trump's attorneys falsely asserted in a written declaration to the DOJ that all classified material had been returned, according to four New York Times sources. The Times reported that the signed declaration possibly indicated that Trump's legal team were not forthright with federal investigators about the material.[11][42]

On June 8, the FBI told Trump's team to better secure the storage area, so Trump aides added a padlock to the room.[21][43][44] On June 22, they subpoenaed the Trump Organization for surveillance footage at Mar-a-Lago, including views from outside the storage room.[31][21][11] The footage concerned investigators about the handling of the materials.[11]

August 2022: FBI/DOJ obtains search warrant from federal court

Federal agents established probable cause to obtain a search warrant against Trump because, while he had turned over some classified documents to federal authorities, agents suspected he was unlawfully withholding other classified information.[45] The New York Times reported: "Two people briefed on the classified documents that investigators believe remained at Mar-a-Lago indicated that they were so sensitive in nature, and related to national security, that the Justice Department had to act."[32] The warrant was obtained by the Justice Department's National Security Division at the request of NARA to collect material that Trump had potentially not turned over to NARA.[28]

The search warrant showed that the FBI was investigating Trump for suspected violations of three federal laws – Title 18, Section 793 (a part of the Espionage Act of 1917); Title 18, Section 1519 (part of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act); and Title 18, Section 2071.[1][46][47][6][48] Trump had not been charged with any crime.[6][49] If charged and convicted under the third law, Trump would be "disqualified from holding any office under the United States". However, a number of legal scholars have questioned the constitutionality of that provision in the statute.[50][51]

Federal magistrate judge Bruce Reinhart of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida approved the warrant on August 5, 2022.[52][53] Reviewing and approving search warrants is a typical duty of federal magistrate judges.[52] Legal experts noted that, given the high profile of the operation, the application for a search warrant (granted on probable cause) would have been scrupulously scrutinized by federal authorities.[54][55] Will Hurd, a former CIA agent and former Republican congressman, said: "Trump and his lawyers admitted to and then handed over presidential documents improperly taken from and stored outside the White House. Of course the FBI had probable cause to go in looking for more."[56]

FBI search of Mar-a-Lago

On August 8, 2022, at 9 a.m.,[57][58] FBI agents executed a search warrant, searching Trump's residence at Mar-a-Lago for the material specified in the search warrant, including classified material that pertained to special access programs[32] and – according to The Washington Post – nuclear weapons.[59][33][60] The FBI notified the Secret Service of the search a few hours in advance.[27] The Secret Service facilitated the FBI's access to Mar-a-Lago,[27][28] but did not participate in the search.[27] Trump's son Eric Trump stated on Fox News that he received a call about the search and informed his father shortly thereafter.[61][62]

Two of Trump's lawyers, Christina Bobb and Lindsey Halligan, were present for the search[27] but were not allowed inside.[63] Trump and his family watched the FBI search from New York remotely via a live feed transmitted from Mar-a-Lago's system of security cameras.[64][65]

FBI agents searched in 'taint' teams to ensure that they were not taking privileged correspondence between Trump and his lawyers.[45] The New York Times reported the FBI agents "carried out the search in a relatively low-key manner" and intentionally did not wear the usual navy-blue agency jackets.[28] FBI agents searched a storage unit in the basement, where they broke through the newly installed padlock.[28][43] They further searched Trump's second-floor office in the main house, where they opened a "hotel-style" safe containing "nothing of consequence"; and finally Trump's residence.[28][48] In accordance with the usual procedure for executing search warrants, the FBI agents provided Trump's counsel with a copy of both the warrant and a detailed three-page manifest,[32][66] called an FBI property receipt, inventorying the records seized.[28][67][68][69]

FBI agents seized 26 boxes from the club,[d] including 11 sets of classified government materials, of which four sets were classified as top secret, three sets were classified as secret, and three sets of papers were classified as confidential.[71][66] One set of the documents was at the highest classification level: "top secret/SCI" (meaning top secret/sensitive compartmented information).[71][66] The seized material included binders, photographs, and handwritten notes. Some documents were related to Trump's pardon of his ally Roger Stone and some were related to the president of France.[71][66] The property receipt, signed by Trump's attorney Christina Bobb at 6:19 p.m. at the end of the search,[72] showed that Trump possessed documents marked "TS/SCI" and another item labeled "Info re: President of France".[46]

The FBI agents left the property around 6:30 p.m. with the boxes.[63]

Peter Schorsch, the publisher of FloridaPolitics.com, was the first to report on the event.[73][45] Trump also publicly acknowledged the search.[57]

The White House said that President Biden received no advance notice of the search and learned of it from news reports after it took place.[74][75]

Release of search warrant and property receipt

The August 12 order to unseal, the unsealed search warrant, and the receipt for property filed in federal court
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announcing the DOJ motion to unseal the warrant for the search

In keeping with longstanding DOJ reticence to comment on ongoing investigations,[76] as well as the tight limits Attorney General Merrick Garland placed on such public statements, the government did not initially comment on the search.[77]

While the DOJ remained silent, a person close to Trump contacted a DOJ official to send a message from Trump to Garland. Trump wanted Garland to know that people around the country were angered by the search.[11][78]

On August 11, however, the DOJ filed a motion in court to unseal the search warrant and property receipt, unless Trump objected to making them public.[79][80][81][e] On the same day, Garland held a press conference, in which he said that the department had filed a motion to unseal the warrant and the property receipt "in light of the former president's public confirmation of the search, the surrounding circumstances, and the substantial public interest in this matter", and that he had personally approved the decision to seek the search warrant.[53][81][69] Garland also stated that "upholding the rule of law means applying the law evenly, without fear or favor" and criticized "recent unfounded attacks on the professionalism of the FBI and Justice Department agents and prosecutors".[69][81]

Trump later stated on social media that he supported the release of the warrant and related documents,[84] though he declined to release them himself,[32][67][68] and his legal team agreed to the documents' release.[85] The search warrant and property receipt were unsealed (made publicly available) on the afternoon of August 12,[46][86][f] with the signatures of two FBI agents redacted.[88]

CNN, joined by The Washington Post, NBC News, and Scripps, requested to unseal all documents in the court record, including the probable cause affidavits in support of the search warrant.[89][90] The New York Times Company filed its own similar motion.[91] CBS, the Palm Beach Post, the Miami Herald, the Tampa Bay Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Associated Press and ABC also requested to unseal affidavits.[92]

On August 15, the DOJ submitted a court filing in which they opposed the release of the sworn affidavit used as the basis of the search warrant. The DOJ argued that "this investigation implicates highly classified materials" and such a disclosure would compromise the integrity of the criminal investigation and the co-operation of witnesses in this matter and others, citing the "widely reported threats made against law enforcement personnel in the wake of the August 8 search".[93] The DOJ stated that if the magistrate judge ordered the release of the affidavit, the necessary redactions would render the unsealed text "devoid of any meaningful context", saying the "redacted version would not serve any public interest".[92][93] The DOJ requested the magistrate to instead unseal other information including a cover sheet, the DOJ's August 5 motion to seal the warrant and the judge's sealing order of the same day.[93]

Congressional inquiries

Rep. Carolyn Maloney, chair of the House Oversight Committee, and Rep. Adam Schiff, chair of the House Intelligence Committee, sent a letter to Avril Haines, director of National Intelligence (DNI) requesting a classified congressional briefing and a damage assessment.[94][95] House Republicans sent letters to FBI Director Wray, Garland, and White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain requesting documents relating to the search; and separately to Wray relating to his personal use of FBI aircraft.[96]

Mark Warner and Marco Rubio, chair and ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, sent a private letter to Garland and Haines requesting that DOJ and ODNI provide the committee with the classified documents seized and an damage assessment of potential risks to national security.[97][98]

Reactions

White House

The White House said that President Biden and White House officials were not aware of the search until it was reported on the news. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said "those investigations should be free from political influence" and did not comment on the search itself except that the independent Department of Justice was carrying out the investigation.[99][74][100]

Trump and his attorneys

Trump condemned the search on his social media platform Truth Social, saying: "These are dark times for our nation, as my beautiful home, Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, is currently under siege, raided and occupied by a large group of FBI agents. Nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before."[101] He likened the search to the 1970s Watergate scandal; alleged that it was politically motivated to stop him from running for president in 2024;[101][102] described the search as "a politically motivated move" by the Biden administration; and quickly began citing it in text messages and emails soliciting political donations.[103] There is no evidence that the FBI's search was politically motivated.[104] Trump's spokesman Taylor Budowich made similar claims.[11]

In the wake of the search, Trump released a variety of defensive statements that were often contradictory and unsupported, which was a tactic he had used for decades prior, including during the investigation into whether the Trump campaign conspired with Russia, and during Trump's first impeachment trial.[105][106] In this case of the search of Mar-a-Lago, Trump's defensive statements did not actually explain why he continued to keep the documents in an unsecured location when government officials had been trying to collect them for over a year.[105]

Trump baselessly claimed that the FBI might have doctored evidence to support its search warrant and might have planted incriminating materials and recording devices at Mar-a-Lago. Trump's allies echoed these conspiracist claims.[39][107]

Following Garland's statement, Trump further claimed on Truth Social that his lawyers had been fully cooperating with federal investigators prior to the search: "The government could have had whatever they wanted, if we had it".[53]

Trump later falsely claimed that former President Barack Obama had "taken to Chicago" and "kept" some "33 million pages of documents, much of them classified"; these falsehoods were amplified by conservative commentators.[108][109] NARA corrected Trump's misstatement, noting that NARA had obtained "exclusive legal and physical custody" of Obama's records when he left office in 2017, in accordance with the Presidential Records Act.[108] NARA further stated that Obama had "no control over where and how" NARA stored the records, with NARA "exclusively" maintaining around 30 million pages of unclassified Obama records near Chicago, while classified Obama records were maintained by NARA in its Washington, D.C facility.[110]

After The Washington Post reported that nuclear documents were sought for in the search of Mar-a-Lago, Trump said on August 12: "Nuclear weapons issue is a Hoax".[65] Also that day, Trump accused former President Obama of keeping "lots" of nuclear documents.[110]

On August 12, Trump said that the documents he brought to Mar-a-Lago were "all declassified" before he left office, without providing further details.[2][111] Kash Patel, a former Trump administration official, asserted in May that Trump had deemed the boxes he returned to the National Archives as declassified shortly before leaving office, but "White House counsel failed to generate the paperwork to change the classification markings".[112][14] 18 USC 1519 and 2071 criminalizes the removal or concealment of government records regardless of their relevance to national security, and 18 USC 793 bans removing national defense files regardless of their level of classification.[2]

In a statement provided to John Solomon, Trump's office asserted that he frequently took classified documents to Mar-a-Lago and had issued a "standing order" that such documents "were deemed to be declassified".[46]

Trump demanded that the documents recovered by the FBI be return to him; he claimed that some of the items seized were covered by attorney-client privilege and executive privilege.[113][114][115]

On August 15, Trump said that the FBI had taken three of his passports during the search, one of which was expired.[116]

Trump allies and supporters

On the day of the search, a group of about two dozen Trump supporters gathered in protest in front of Mar-a-Lago; [101][117] others held protests in front of FBI offices in Phoenix, Arizona, and Washington D.C.[118] Over the next few days, Trump supporters continued to demonstrate outside Mar-a-Lago,[119] and at several pickets outside a number of FBI field offices in various states.[120][121][122][123][124][125] A small group of armed Trump supporters protested outside the FBI office in Phoenix.[123]

CBS News reporter Robert Costa reported that within Trump's circle, "Some allies are urging him to speed up his decision on 2024 in the wake of this, that no one in [the] GOP will challenge him now... others are telling him to stay cool, wait."[45]

Trump allies in Congress and in right-wing media spread a wide variety of misinformation and baseless conspiracy theories: that the FBI may have planted evidence; that the FBI search aimed to stop Trump from exposing criminals in government; that the FBI conducted a "military occupation" of Mar-a-lago; that the FBI entered Mar-a-lago "unannounced" and was "taking whatever they want for themselves"; and that some FBI agents went "rogue".[126]

Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, while guest hosting Tucker Carlson Tonight, showed a doctored photo depicting the federal magistrate judge who approved the warrant together with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell; Kilmeade later described the fake photo as "a meme" shared "in jest".[127][128]

The FBI search ignited apocalyptic, violent rhetoric among Trump supporters, including members of the far-right,[129] on media including Fox News, Newsmax, PJ Media, the Blaze and right-wing talk radio.[75] Talk of civil war and violence spiked online among far-right users on platforms such as Truth Social, Gab, Telegram and Twitter, including from conservative commentator Steven Crowder and white supremacist commentator Nick Fuentes.[130][117] The New York Young Republican Club blamed the search on "internationalist forces and their allies intent on undermining the foundation of our Republic".[129] Experts on political violence said that the extremist rhetoric creates a dangerous atmosphere and heightens the risk of violent acts.[129]

Threats against government officials

FBI Director Christopher A. Wray denounced online threats against federal agents and DOJ employees.[131] Wray said the FBI would "stay vigilant and adjust our security posture accordingly" given a surge of threats to FBI employees and property following the search of Mar-a-Lago.[88] The names of the two FBI agents who signed the warrant paperwork were redacted in the official court-released documents; the right-wing outlet Breitbart published leaked versions of the documents that revealed the agents' names, exposing them to harassment.[132][133]

The federal magistrate judge who approved the search was the target of antisemitic vitriol, misinformation, and threats on sites such as 4chan;[52][88][134][135] due to online threats against him, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida removed information about the magistrate from its online directory for his protection.[52][136][88] The synagogue he attended had also received threats and is under additional security.[134][135]

The FBI and Department of Homeland Security issued a joint bulletin warning of an "unprecedented" increase in threats and acts of violence against federal law enforcement officials, including "calls for the targeted killing of judicial, law enforcement, and government officials associated with the Palm Beach search, including the federal judge who approved the Palm Beach search warrant". Multiple possible targets of violence had their personal information posted online.[137][138][139] The bulletin noted a threat to place a dirty bomb in front of FBI Headquarters.[98][140]

A Mercer County, Pennsylvania man was charged in US District Court with making online threats against FBI agents on the Gab social networking site after the raid.[141]

FBI field office attack
Main article: Cincinnati FBI field office attack

Ricky Shiffer, a 42-year-old Trump supporter wearing body armor and armed with an AR-15 style rifle and a nail gun, attempted to breach the FBI field office in Cincinnati, Ohio, on August 11 and died in a subsequent confrontation with police officers. He had taken part in the January 6 United States Capitol attack,[142][143] and was one of the most prolific posters on Trump's social media platform Truth Social, where he posted on about his desire to kill FBI agents after the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago.[144] Shiffer had engaged in violent extremist rhetoric on social media for years,[145] and he had been on the FBI's radar since May 2022 after the agency received a tip about him.[146]

Republican elected officials and candidates

The Republican National Committee, as well as most Republicans, responded to the FBI search by attacking the FBI and depicting Trump as a victim and political martyr.[147] Republicans said that the search made the U.S. into a "third-world country" or "banana republic", although democracies such as France, South Korea, and Israel have all investigated and prosecuted former leaders for criminal offenses.[148] Former Vice President Mike Pence stated that the search undermined public confidence in the system of justice, noting, "No former President of the United States has ever been subject to a raid of their personal residence in American history."[149] Several other Republican politicians, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, U.S. Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio of Florida, and former Trump Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the search.[45][150] Many Republicans vowed to investigate the DOJ if the party retook control of Congress in the November 2022 elections.[147] In a tweet, House Minority Leader, Kevin McCarthy said the Justice Department "has reached an intolerable state of weaponized politicization" and said: "When Republicans take back the House, we will conduct immediate oversight of this department, follow the facts, and leave no stone unturned. Attorney General Garland, preserve your documents and clear your calendar."[45] Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia called for the FBI to be defunded.[45] Senator Rand Paul called for the Espionage Act to be repealed.[151][152] Anthony Sabatini, a Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives called for the state to "sever all ties with DOJ immediately" and called for FBI agents to be "arrested upon sight".[153] There is no evidence of improper conduct by federal investigators,[39] and no evidence that the search was politically motivated.[104]

Some Republicans took a more restrained tone upon reports that the documents seized were highly classified, but nonetheless questioned the search.[154][98][155] Multiple Republicans called on the DOJ and FBI to release documents surrounding the search, particularly the affidavit used as the basis of the warrant.[155] Mike Turner, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said that he was "very concerned about the method that was used in raiding Mar-a-Lago"; Brian Fitzpatrick questioned whether "the law is being enforced equally" and with "parity".[156]

Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney, the top Republican on the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack, criticized her party's response to the federal investigation of Trump, writing, "I have been ashamed to hear members of my party attacking the integrity of the FBI agents involved with the recent Mar-a-Lago search. These are sickening comments that put the lives of patriotic public servants at risk."[131]

Congressional Democrats

House Democrats praised the search as a step toward accountability for Trump.[157][158] Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, said in an interview after the search, "We believe in the rule of law. That's what our country is about. And no person is above the law. Not even the president of the United States. Not even a former president of the United States."[159] Senate Democrats offered more reserved reactions; in the immediate aftermath of the search, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he would "withhold comment until we know more".[158]

Scholars and former officials

Following the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago, Reuters and Al Jazeera cited scholars and former officials, who said the way Trump used the Mar-a-Lago residence presented a highly unique security "nightmare".[160][161] Commenting on a 2017 North Korea strategy meeting between Trump and Shinzo Abe which was surrounded by guests, national security lawyer Mark Zaid stated, "What we saw was Trump be so lax in security that he was having a sensitive meeting regarding a potential war topic where non-U.S. government personnel could observe and photograph."[160]

Mary McCord, a former Department of Justice official, stated: "Clearly they thought it was very serious to get these materials back into secured space. Even just retention of highly classified documents in improper storage – particularly given Mar-a-Lago, the foreign visitors there and others who might have connections with foreign governments and foreign agents – creates a significant national security threat."[160]

Experts considered Trump "the perfect profile of a security risk: He was a disgruntled former employee, with access to sensitive government secrets, dead set on tearing down what he believed was a deep state out to get him."[13] Columbia University political scientist David Rothkopf viewed the Mar-a-Lago search as a reminder that Trump "was, and is, a national security risk unlike any the United States has ever faced."[162]

Trump's former chief of staff, John F. Kelly, said that Trump has a long track record of disregarding rules for handling sensitive documents; that Trump "didn't believe in the classification system"; and that Trump held U.S. intelligence in disdain.[13]

Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton said "almost nothing would surprise me about what's in the documents at Mar-a-Lago." Bolton recalled that although Trump usually did not read his President's Daily Brief, he would sometimes ask his briefers "to keep the highly classified visual aids, pictures, charts and graphs" that were prepared for him, and that Trump sometimes refused to return these materials when asked by his briefers to do so.[13]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ 18 U.S. Code § 793[7]
  2. ^ 18 U.S. Code § 1519[8]
  3. ^ 18 U.S. Code § 2071[9]
  4. ^ The first property receipt identified 5 boxes: A-14, A-26, A-43, A-13, A-33. The second property receipt identified 21 boxes: A-1, A-12, A-15, A-16, A-17, A-18, A-27, A-28, A-30, A-32, A-35, A-23, A-22, A-24, A-34, A-39, A-40, A-41, A-42, A-71, A-73.[70]
  5. ^ The conservative group Judicial Watch and the Times Union newspaper (of Albany, New York) filed the first motions to unseal the search warrant.[82][83]
  6. ^ The documents were obtained and reported on by multiple news organizations on August 12 before the formal unsealing, as they were acquired by multiple news organizations.[46][87]

References

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