Posted on 06/20/2023 10:02:12 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
If former president Donald Trump’s case ever makes it to court, federal prosecutors will use his own words against him — spoken on national TV to Fox News host Bret Baier on Monday. I’m not a lawyer. I don’t even play one on internet video. So when it comes to stories like this one, there are a few people I turn to for sharp analysis and good advice.
On the surface at least, what Trump said could cause him trouble in court.
When Baier asked, “Why not just hand [the documents] over then?” Trump replied, “Because I had boxes — I wanted to go through the boxes and get all my personal things out. I don’t want to hand that over to NARA yet. And I was very busy, as you’ve sort of seen.”
“These boxes were interspersed with all sorts of [personal] things.”
You can read more of the transcript here and decide for yourself.
I’m not here to pass judgment on the many indictments against Trump… except that I can’t let the opportunity entirely go. If we’re going to start prosecuting high-level executive branch people for keeping classified documents they shouldn’t have had, let’s start with Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, neither of whom, as secretary of state or (then) as vice president, had any legal power to declassify those documents. Trump did, which is maybe a strong mitigating factor.
That out of the way, it’s both easy and proper to dismiss Twitter hot takes like this one from Erick Erickson:
Guys, Trump admitted on TV tonight he withheld documents from the grand jury. Game over, legally. What an idiot.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) June 20, 2023
(Excerpt) Read more at pjmedia.com ...
That has absolutely no bearing on Counts 32-37 of the Indictment. Apparently, you are either willfully ignorant or just plain ignorant.
No doubt about it, that 12 year old girl snark makes you look cool.
Folks, the Presidential Records Act is not a criminal statute. It’s expected that a President may need to sort out what’s personal and what’s government property. Nobody has ever been prosecuted under the PRA because there are no criminal penalties for violating it.
What Trump is being accused of breaking is the Espionage Act. The Dems say that Trump had classified materials that he wasn’t entitled to possess. None of that has been proven, and it’s not clear what was declassified. Trump says he declassified all of the documents. The government says otherwise. It will get sorted out in court.
Actually, none of the charges rely on the classification of the documents. He is being charged with possessing national defense information and refusing to return it when asked. Those charges do not require that the documents be classified, only that they contain national defense information. So even if Trump declassified every document in his possession, it wouldn’t impact the charges included in the indictment.
You were the one that asked if I knew what all the books in a lawyer’s office was and I responded since Hillary had never been charged with a crime none of her cases would be in any books in a lawyer’s offices
It doesn’t matter what we think. Nor does it matter what Trump said. What matters is how the MSM will play this all out in front of the independent undecided types, and those who vote but don’t follow any of this in detail.
RE: What matters is how the MSM will play this all out in front of the independent undecided types, and those who vote but don’t follow any of this in detail.
Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz recommends strongly that the Trump Classified Document trial be TELEVISED so that the American people don’t see the trial through the filter of the Mainstream Media. After all, this involves a NATIONAL ISSUE that affects the decisions of every American voter ( the leading Republican Presidential candidate ).
32 to 37 is piling on the same “violation”. Apparently you know nothing of the Indictment in particular the absolute IDIOCY of trying to apply the 1917 Espionage Act (from Woodrow Wilson against his opposition to dragging the US into WWI late in the game for his own Global genius purposes. The act, like so many others has not been applied since to anyone, and specifically cannot be applied to a President or former President and has not been as a result.
Far more informed than your wishful thinking twitter level understanding of actual LAW. You can look up the section of repeat violation within the 1917 Act— and immediately see this is an incredible prosecutorial misconduct to get a gran jury to indict utilizing it. Desperate, and quite stupid. So they move the venue... weaseling again. Shopping judge will not withstand appeal to SCOTUS or even 11th under control and review of Clarence Thomas.
Here ya go- the Federalist. Learn. Then explain to all here whom you work for.
https://thefederalist.com/2023/06/16/six-reasons-dojs-legal-case-against-trump-is-seriously-flawed/
You couldn’t be more wrong. Your arrogance does not make up for your obvious lack of understanding of the law. The elements of the offenses embodied in Counts 32 - 37 differ markedly from 18 USC § 793(e) If however you are an attorney, I suggest you increase your malpractice liability coverage.
Whether something is national defense information or not is very subjective. Given the corruption in the federal government, I have zero faith in the arbiters of what constitutes NDI vs not.
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