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Fact check explores presidential authority to declassify
American Bar Association ^ | 10/24/22 | American Bar Association

Posted on 06/08/2023 5:44:40 PM PDT by tarpit

Trump added to the confusion when he said in an interview with Fox personality Sean Hannity, “There doesn’t have to be a process, as I understand it. ... If you’re the president of the United States, you can declassify just by saying it’s declassified. Even by thinking about it.”

Most national security legal experts dismissed the former president’s suggestion that he could declassify documents simply by thinking about it. But as an ABA Legal Fact Check posted Oct. 17 explains, legal guidelines support his contention that presidents have broad authority to formally declassify most documents that are not statutorily protected, while they are in office.

The system of classifying national security documents is largely a bureaucratic process used by the federal government to control how executive branch officials handle information, whose release could cause the country harm. The government has, however, prosecuted cases for both mistaken and deliberate mishandling of information. Under the U.S. Constitution, the president as commander in chief is given broad powers to classify and declassify such information, often through use of executive orders.

Some secrets, such as information related to nuclear weapons, are handled separately under a specific statutory scheme that Congress has adopted under the Atomic Energy Act. Those secrets cannot be automatically declassified by the president alone and require, by law, extensive consultation with executive branch agencies.

In all cases, however, a formal procedure is required so governmental agencies know with certainty what has been declassified and decisions memorialized. A federal appeals court in a 2020 Freedom of Information Act case, New York Times v. CIA, underscored that point: “Declassification cannot occur unless designated officials follow specified procedures,” the court said.

As the new ABA Legal Fact Check notes, the extent of a president’s legal authority to unilaterally declassify materials — without following formal procedures — has yet to be challenged in court.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: classified; declassified; indictment; trump
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To: tarpit

The Donkey Communists:
1. have known what documents Trump had for months
2. knew the relevant law months ago
3. have long known they have no case with respect to the documents.


41 posted on 06/08/2023 6:38:33 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: tarpit

18 U.S. Code § 793 -
Gathering, transmitting or losing defense information
(d)Whoever,
>lawfully having possession of, access to, control over, or being entrusted with any document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch, photograph, photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, instrument, appliance, or note
>>relating to the national defense,
>>or information relating to the national defense
>>>which information the possessor has reason to believe
>>>>could be used to the injury of the United States
>>>>or to the advantage of any foreign nation,
>willfully communicates, delivers, transmits or causes to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted or attempts to communicate, deliver, transmit or cause to be communicated, delivered or transmitted the same to any person not entitled to receive it,
>or willfully retains the same and fails to deliver it on demand to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it; or

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/793


42 posted on 06/08/2023 6:45:20 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: IndispensableDestiny

When researching the law, it is important to remember the four main types of law: constitutional, statutory, administrative and case (common) law.

Statutory Law [USC+]
Both state and federal statutes are available in print and online from Andersen Library. The federal statutes can be found in the Statutes at Large (in chronological order of the date of passage) or in the United States Code (codified by subject matter). The latest edition of United States Code (2006) is available in the Government Reference Collection. As for Wisconsin, you can find the latest edition of the Wisconsin Statutes both online from the Wisconsin State Legislature or via Westlaw.

Administrative Law [CFR+]
The regulations passed by both the federal and state agencies can be found in publications online and in print at the library. For the federal agencies, check the Code of Federal Regulations, updated yearly. If you’re looking for proposals from federal agencies, you’ll find them in the Federal Register, published daily. Wisconsin has similar publications, the Wisconsin Administrative Code and the Administrative Register.

https://libguides.uww.edu/c.php?g=548410&p=3762360


43 posted on 06/08/2023 6:48:48 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: ConservativeInPA

There is no higher authority. The President could declassify EVERYTHING and the different agencies would have to go through extraordinary methods to keep some things classified, mainly sources and methods.

The President is the OCA, original classification authority for everything. All else is derivative classification authority.


44 posted on 06/08/2023 6:51:21 PM PDT by wbarmy (Trying to do better.)
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To: tarpit

ARTICLE II

SECTION 1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States.


45 posted on 06/08/2023 6:51:34 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: tarpit

The Just Us Department is really moving fast on this. I assume that the Biden bribery case that they have been “working on” for the last three years will be concluded in a matter of days or even hours.


46 posted on 06/08/2023 6:55:43 PM PDT by Colorado Doug (Now I know how the Indians felt to be sold out for a few beads and trinkets)
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To: tarpit

The USSC disagreed in the past. I suppose that means nothing.
It seems Clinton got off the hook via the USSC. Different court makeup will probably have different rules. I wouldn’t count on Trump’s last two picks to help him out.


47 posted on 06/08/2023 7:09:33 PM PDT by Revel
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To: tarpit

“what evidence”

They will say the ‘evidence’ is secret.

What will not be secret is the applicable law and the motives of the people involved.

Some federal people may be violating the Hatch Act.

Is Debbie Democrat at the National Archives “entitled” to ask Trump for a document she can get from an agency which is more likely to have a copy?

An agency copy will be more likely to have been reviewed and be marked declassified and hence of greater archival value.

Is Debbie Democrat, GS-6, even “entitled” to see a document stating the number of US spies in the PLA?


48 posted on 06/08/2023 7:18:38 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: ClearCase_guy

Presidents de facto declassify materials all the time. Simply the action of removing classified materials from the White House secure areas to the private quarters, de facto declassified those materials (at least temporarily). Biden has admitted he took classified materials to the private quarters (which is not a SCIF) on numerous occasions.


49 posted on 06/08/2023 7:22:07 PM PDT by XRdsRev (Justice for Bernell Trammell, Trump supporter, murdered in 2020)
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To: Brian Griffin

Now imagine Trump had a document stating we had 13 spies in the PLA as of January 2019.

We might have 33 now, or 11.

Are the Chinese going to polygraph a few million people?


50 posted on 06/08/2023 7:23:25 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: noiseman

Yes, and I think that’s what kills this beyond the political poison. They’re trying to stir up. Trump as president declassify anything he wants anyway, he wants anytime he wants. He is the highest executive,


51 posted on 06/08/2023 7:26:40 PM PDT by Reno89519 (Donald Tantrum? No Thank You. We Can Do Better! I am a Veteran Supporting Veteran DeSantis.)
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To: tarpit

NARA Basic Laws and Authorities

https://www.archives.gov/about/laws#presrec


52 posted on 06/08/2023 8:04:00 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: tarpit

The President’s declassification power is plenary.


53 posted on 06/08/2023 8:04:03 PM PDT by grey_whiskers ( The opinions are solely those of the author and are subject to change without notice.)
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To: tarpit

Presidential Records (44 U.S.C. Chapter 22)

§ 2201. Definitions

§ 2202. Ownership of Presidential records

§ 2203. Management and custody of Presidential records

§ 2204. Restrictions on access to Presidential records

§ 2205. Exceptions to restricted access

§ 2206. Regulations

§ 2207. Vice-Presidential records

§ Note. Rule of Construction

§ 2208. Claims of constitutionally based privilege against disclosure

§ 2209. Disclosure requirement for official business conducted using non-official electronic messaging accounts
....

§ 2203. Management and custody of Presidential records

(a) Through the implementation of records management controls and other necessary actions, the President shall take all such steps as may be necessary to assure that the activities, deliberations, decisions, and policies that reflect the performance of the President’s constitutional, statutory, or other official or ceremonial duties are adequately documented and that such records are preserved and maintained as Presidential records pursuant to the requirements of this section and other provisions of law
....

§ 2204. Restrictions on access to Presidential records

(a) Prior to the conclusion of a President’s term of office or last consecutive term of office, as the case may be, the President shall specify durations, not to exceed 12 years, for which access shall be restricted with respect to information, in a Presidential record, within one or more of the following categories:

(1)(A) specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and

(B) in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order....

https://www.archives.gov/about/laws/presidential-records.html#2203


54 posted on 06/08/2023 8:14:31 PM PDT by Brian Griffin
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To: ConservativeInPA

None.


55 posted on 06/08/2023 8:19:04 PM PDT by lastchance (Cognovit Dominus qui sunt eius.)
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To: tarpit

Does the “fact check” mention the Presidential Records Act? All records in the Presidential possession are property of the President and are his no matter what the classification may be.


56 posted on 06/09/2023 6:40:52 AM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now its your turn)
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To: Brian Griffin

Are the Chinese going to polygraph a few million people?

No, they’ll just assassinate 50, or 100 of the most likely.


57 posted on 06/09/2023 8:20:22 AM PDT by ro_dreaming (Who knew "Idiocracy", "1984", "Enemy of the State", and "Person of Interest" would be non-fiction?)
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To: ClearCase_guy

You asked: “Please point to the written procedure the President must follow. I haven’t seen it.”
- - - - -
There isn’t one. The ABA is wrong.

Something that actually happened: In one of his political speeches, President Carter blabbed some classified information on spy satellite capabilities. If anyone else had done that, prison. When President Carter put the classified information on the air, that information was automatically declassified on authority, J. Carter, President of the United States. I have never seen any indication that he did it on purpose. As best I can tell, it was just carelessness. But it is definitionally impossible for the President to commit a crime by revealing classified information. A president can declassify anything, without even meaning to, by revealing it.

(By rumor, this set off a scramble in the classified world, to try to figure out what President Carter had just declassified, and what was still classified.)


58 posted on 06/09/2023 5:08:06 PM PDT by Keb
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