Trump slams DOJ's filing opposing 'special master,' allegation he tried to 'obstruct' probe: 'I Declassified!'
Trump claims he 'declassified' documents that DOJ alleges were concealed and removed in order to 'obstruct' the investigation
Former President Donald Trump slammed the Department of Justice following the agency's opposition to his request for a "special master" to review documents seized from his Mar-a-Lago estate, claiming he had already "declassified" the materials.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-s...classified
Yeah, this is what I think is more likely. Trump had what he believes to be declassified documents. The FBI doesn't think he declassified them properly, so they are using that as a pretense to raid Mar-A-Lago to see if there's anything really there. Obviously, I am not referring to the field agents, but the political brass within the organization. This needed to be handled differently. Marty is probably wrong in blindly assuming those documents to be serious, and Drifter is probably wrong in assuming the FBI planted them. In the end, it doesn't matter, because the FBI has been losing credibility with regards to Trump. We need to start holding them accountable for these failings, because, at this point, even if Trump did something wrong, half the country isn't going to believe it. This falls squarely on the shoulders of the FBI brass, imo.
(08-31-2022, 05:38 PM)The Real Marty Wrote: [ -> ]Napolitano's view on the subject.
https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/...-indicted/
"He committed a mortal sin in the criminal defense world by denying something for which he had not been accused"
Napolitano is saying the most likely explanation of Trump's actions is simple ignorance of the law. The law he was supposed to be the chief enforcer of for four years. Do these statutes leave room for ignorance to be a defense? Probably not. We'll see if he's right.
Lost in all this is what possible motive did Trump have?
I agree with a lot of what Napolitano is saying, but I don't think anyone can be aware of all the rules and regulations. The law has become so muddled that you could arrest almost anyone for anything. Trump does himself no favors, but it's the selective application of the law that bothers me. If Trump and Hillary were reversed, he would have been indicted for her server incident.
Back in 2016, I remember on Fox News Napolitano said Hillary Clinton would be indicted, so, while what he wrote in this case was interesting, you do have to take it with a grain of salt.
(08-31-2022, 06:36 PM)Lucky2Last Wrote: [ -> ]I agree with a lot of what Napolitano is saying, but I don't think anyone can be aware of all the rules and regulations. The law has become so muddled that you could arrest almost anyone for anything. Trump does himself no favors, but it's the selective application of the law that bothers me. If Trump and Hillary were reversed, he would have been indicted for her server incident.
By the time of the FBI raid, the Trump people and I assume Trump himself, were well aware of the applicable law, since this had been going on for over a year and a half. Trump's people told the government they had scoured Mar-A-Lago for any more government documents, and hadn't found any, but the FBI was able to go in and find all sorts of stuff easily, so it sure looks like the Trump people were being deceptive about it. Why is still a mystery.
Here's a good explanation of what the feds are alleging:
https://dnyuz.com/2022/08/30/justice-dep...ng-to-him/
And one other interesting thing- Trump's filing in favor of a special master to review the documents in question says that anyone who is appointed a special master should have a top-secret/SCI security clearance. But if the documents were actually declassified as Trump has claimed several times, why would the special master need a top-secret security clearance to review the documents? It appears the Trump legal team is admitting the documents were not declassified.
Comey agreed that Hillary had technically broken the law but said it wasn't serious enough to be prosecuted.
So Napolitano's estimation of the law was likely correct, just his estimation of the DoJ's discretion was off.
Hillary was a lot smarter about what she did. The emails were deleted. There was nothing to seize. She said the deleted emails were personal in nature, and it was difficult to prove otherwise.
So she had little liability for prosecution under recordkeeping/archiving laws.
She was most liable for prosecution for mishandling classified info.
With Trump it's the opposite.
LOL... You can't make this stuff up...
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(09-02-2022, 05:55 PM)Ronster Wrote: [ -> ]LOL... You can't make this stuff up...
Why do you think that's funny?
(09-02-2022, 01:53 PM)WingerDinger Wrote: [ -> ]https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/...KhodQ&s=19
I bet Biden, in his heart, knows that he is too old to run for President again, and would like nothing more than to figure out a way to prevent Trump from running again, so that he won't have to run again. But I don't see how a pardon would play into that. Trump probably thinks no matter what kind of case DoJ makes against him, he'll always have at least one juror on his side. And he's probably right about that. If he doesn't believe he could be convicted, why would he care about a pardon?
(09-02-2022, 10:49 PM)mikesez Wrote: [ -> ] (09-02-2022, 01:53 PM)WingerDinger Wrote: [ -> ]https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/...KhodQ&s=19
I bet Biden, in his heart, knows that he is too old to run for President again, and would like nothing more than to figure out a way to prevent Trump from running again, so that he won't have to run again. But I don't see how a pardon would play into that. Trump probably thinks no matter what kind of case DoJ makes against him, he'll always have at least one juror on his side. And he's probably right about that. If he doesn't believe he could be convicted, why would he care about a pardon?
I'm not sure they will charge Trump. Even if they do, it's possible a judge will rule that he can't get a fair trial, due to the pre-trial publicity and the fact that people have already made up their minds about him. Also, if he is put on trial, there will be so many demonstrations and attempts to find out who is on the jury that there will be a very large chance of a mistrial due to jury intimidation.
The best thing might be for the government to just put the evidence out there in the public sphere, and let people see it.
And if he gets the Republican nomination, and he participates in debates, I would anticipate whoever is the Democratic candidate will hammer him with the question, "Why did you steal top secret documents when you left the White House?" They will use the word "steal."
The anti-Trump advertisements will write themselves. Footage of January 6, with the caption, "Is this what you want?" Pictures of classified documents with the caption, "Why did he take them?"
The election will be all about Trump. It won't be about any of the issues Republicans want to run on. It'll be all Trump, all the time.
(09-03-2022, 06:49 AM)The Real Marty Wrote: [ -> ] (09-02-2022, 10:49 PM)mikesez Wrote: [ -> ]I bet Biden, in his heart, knows that he is too old to run for President again, and would like nothing more than to figure out a way to prevent Trump from running again, so that he won't have to run again. But I don't see how a pardon would play into that. Trump probably thinks no matter what kind of case DoJ makes against him, he'll always have at least one juror on his side. And he's probably right about that. If he doesn't believe he could be convicted, why would he care about a pardon?
I'm not sure they will charge Trump. Even if they do, it's possible a judge will rule that he can't get a fair trial, due to the pre-trial publicity and the fact that people have already made up their minds about him. Also, if he is put on trial, there will be so many demonstrations and attempts to find out who is on the jury that there will be a very large chance of a mistrial due to jury intimidation.
The best thing might be for the government to just put the evidence out there in the public sphere, and let people see it.
And if he gets the Republican nomination, and he participates in debates, I would anticipate whoever is the Democratic candidate will hammer him with the question, "Why did you steal top secret documents when you left the White House?" They will use the word "steal."
The anti-Trump advertisements will write themselves. Footage of January 6, with the caption, "Is this what you want?" Pictures of classified documents with the caption, "Why did he take them?"
The election will be all about Trump. It won't be about any of the issues Republicans want to run on. It'll be all Trump, all the time.
This is a fact. Unless the Republicans can find another candidate besides DeSantis, Trump will be a front runner. My guess is DeSantis will wait to see what Trump’s intentions are before throwing his hat in the ring. If Trump insists he’s running, DeSantis will defer. He doesn’t want to deal with the specter of Trump. It sucks the the oxygen out of the room.
(09-03-2022, 09:19 AM)homebiscuit Wrote: [ -> ] (09-03-2022, 06:49 AM)The Real Marty Wrote: [ -> ]I'm not sure they will charge Trump. Even if they do, it's possible a judge will rule that he can't get a fair trial, due to the pre-trial publicity and the fact that people have already made up their minds about him. Also, if he is put on trial, there will be so many demonstrations and attempts to find out who is on the jury that there will be a very large chance of a mistrial due to jury intimidation.
The best thing might be for the government to just put the evidence out there in the public sphere, and let people see it.
And if he gets the Republican nomination, and he participates in debates, I would anticipate whoever is the Democratic candidate will hammer him with the question, "Why did you steal top secret documents when you left the White House?" They will use the word "steal."
The anti-Trump advertisements will write themselves. Footage of January 6, with the caption, "Is this what you want?" Pictures of classified documents with the caption, "Why did he take them?"
The election will be all about Trump. It won't be about any of the issues Republicans want to run on. It'll be all Trump, all the time.
This is a fact. Unless the Republicans can find another candidate besides DeSantis, Trump will be a front runner. My guess is DeSantis will wait to see what Trump’s intentions are before throwing his hat in the ring. If Trump insists he’s running, DeSantis will defer. He doesn’t want to deal with the specter of Trump. It sucks the the oxygen out of the room.
Yes, DeSantis has given every indication he will avoid confronting Trump in any way. That disappoints me greatly, because I genuinely think he could separate himself more from Trump and still win. But that's not the choice he's making. He's leaving a lot of cards on the table.
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