“I’ve done nothing wrong.”
Donald Trump (time and again)
Had Donald Trump not transferred hundreds of classified (many marked SECRET, TOP SECRET and TOP SECRT//SCI) and other documents which, pursuant to the Presidential Records Act of 1978, are legally the property of the United States to his home at Mar-a-Lago in January 2021;
Had he ensured those documents and records were properly stored in a secure location with no unauthorized access as required for classified materials and
Had he fully complied in a timely manner with numerous appeals over an 18-month period by the National Archives and Records Administration for the return of all requested records …
There would have been no necessity for the August 8th raid at Mar-a-Lago and the government would likely not be considering prosecutions for obstruction or under Sections 1519 and 2071 of Title 18 of the United States Code which makes taking or concealing government records a crime regardless of whether they had anything to do with national security … and the matter would have quickly become “yesterday’s news”.
But for an individual who has shown contempt for constitutional and social norms and seems to believe the rules everyone else must obey do not apply to him, Trump and his revolving legal team stonewalled and now could be facing several serious federal charges including obstruction of justice.
Rather, he lashed out at the National Archives, Justice Department and FBI … even calling on the rank and file of the FBI to “revolt against its leadership” over its raid on his Mar-a-Lago home.
When his leading Senate acolyte, Lindsey Graham, suggested if Trump were indicted “there’ll be riots in the streets,” rather than condemning what could result in another January 6th insurrection he retweeted Graham’s remarks … akin to his coded, “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by” remarks.
Four questions for Trump’s apologist and staunch supporters:
- Do you really believe FBI agents, whose sole loyalty is to, “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” would carry out a raid without the properly documented legal authorization?
- How would you feel if a current or past president was willing to treat highly classified materials in a such an irresponsible, cavalier and dangerous manner, if you or a member of your family were serving as a covert agent for a U.S. intelligence agency, a State Department official stationed in a foreign country or a member of the armed forces deployed overseas where their release could have potentially lethal consequences for you or your loved ones?
- Do you think if you (or any other private citizen) were suspected of being in possession of highly classified and sensitive materials your home would be searched?
- Do you believe in the constitutional presumption of equal protection and that no individual is above the law?
Poet and essayist Margaret Atwood astutely noted, “The fabric of democracy is always fragile everywhere because it depends on the will of citizens to protect it, and when they become scared, when it becomes dangerous for them to defend it, it can go very quickly.”