Over 100 'classified documents found' at Trump's home back in January
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In a newly disclosed May letter, the US National Archives reports the finding of classified documents at Donald Trump's Florida home earlier this year, with some having the highest levels of classification.
The large quantity of classified material recovered in January by the National Archives and Records Administration provides more insight into what led to the FBI's search of Trump's residence at the Mar-a-Lago resort.
(Reuters Archive)
The US National Archives
discovered more than 700 pages of classified documents at Donald
Trump's Florida home in addition to material seized this month
by FBI agents, according to a newly disclosed May letter that
the records agency sent to the Republican former president's
attorney.
The May 10 letter was sent by Acting US Archivist Debra Steidel Wall to Trump attorney Evan Corcoran.
It was released late on Monday by John Solomon, a journalist who Trump authorised in June to access his presidential records. The National Archives then confirmed its authenticity and posted a copy on its website.
"Among the materials in the boxes are over 100 documents with classification markings, comprising more than 700 pages. Some include the highest levels of classification, including Special Access Program (SAP) materials," Wall's letter said, referring to security protocols reserved for some of the country's most closely held secrets.
The letter contains additional information about Trump's handling of classified materials and his efforts to delay federal officials from being able to review the documents.
The letter shows that Trump's legal team repeatedly tried to stall the Archives from letting the FBI and intelligence officials review the materials, saying that he needed more time to determine if any of the records were covered by a doctrine called executive privilege that enables a president to shield some records.
READ MORE: FBI seized 'top secret' files in raid on Trump home
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ur1IEH0SKaA[/embed]
'No precedent'
The large quantity of classified material in 15 boxes
recovered in January by the National Archives and Records
Administration, some marked as "top secret," provides more
insight into what led to the FBI's court-authorised August 8
search of Trump's residence at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm
Beach.
The agency is responsible for preserving government records.
President Joe Biden's administration — specifically the
Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel — has determined
that the materials were not covered by executive privilege.
It
found that "there is no precedent" for a former president to
shield records from a sitting president using executive
privilege when the materials in question legally belong to the
federal government, according to the letter.
Even after Trump returned the 15 boxes to the Archives, the
Justice Department still suspected he had more classified
material at Mar-a-Lago.
The August 8 search was part of a federal investigation into
whether Trump illegally removed documents from the White House
when he left office in January 2021 after his failed 2020
re-election bid and whether he tried to obstruct the
government's investigation into the removal of the records.
In a lawsuit Trump filed late on Monday against the Justice
Department over the search, he said he was served a grand jury
subpoena on May 11 seeking additional classified records.
On June 3, the department's head of counterintelligence and
three FBI agents visited Mar-a-Lago to inspect a storage room
and collect additional records. Trump received a second subpoena
later that month seeking surveillance footage from security
cameras, which he also provided.
During the August 8 search, FBI agents recovered more than 20
additional boxes containing about 11 sets of records marked as
classified.
READ MORE: US agents reportedly looked for nuclear files in Trump house raid
Source: Reuters
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